Cradle Robber
by VoodooPal
Summary: Sasha, a 17 year old in her final year of school, is forced into an arranged marriage by her controlling father... to a werewolf. OC/Remus Lupin. Warning: Has nothing to do with Hogwarts
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This fan fiction begins at the the start of Harry Potter's fifth year, although he will not appear in it often, if at all. I would also like to mention that pretty much nothing from the end of the fifth book and on will be recognized as legitimate in the fanfic, especially Sirius dying (I love Sirius) and the whole Tonks/Lupin thing.

I would also like to mention that Kerkyra (Kerkyra in Greek, Corfu in English) Island in Greece is a real place. Obviously, "Canary Cottage" is not.

**********

Narkissa Winchcombe grabbed a handful of floo powder from the mantel. Before she stepped into the large fireplace, she glanced once more at the dinning room door. Evidently, her father was not going say a final goodbye before she left for a year. Her final year, in fact, at the _Enchanted Rose School for Young Witches._

Narkissa, or Sasha as she was better known, was not particularly surprised that the house-elves cared more about her leaving than her own father. As the Head of the Werewolf Support Services, Being Division, he had little time to spare. Since the beginning of the summer, he had even less than usual, however. It took her most of her two month vacation to figure out that he had joined _The Order of the Phoenix._ It had taken a great deal of eaves dropping on her part, but it was worth it. There was nothing else to do in the godforsaken house. Sasha did not blame her mother for leaving him. The man cared for work and work alone. Well, now he apparently cared for the Order, too.

Sasha stepped into the fireplace, finally, barely noticing the house elves' sobs of farewell. She threw down the silver powder, and said in a clear voice, "Canary Cottage, Kerkyra Island, Greece." Just as the green flames engulfed her, Sasha saw her her father burst through the French doors, a posse in tow. She heard him sigh in disappointment, but Sasha didn't think much of it. She doubted he would follow her to her mother's house, but he could always send an owl to her at school with some lame excuse.

Before she had even properly arrived in her mother's kitchen, Sasha felt the bone crushing sensation she knew could only be a hug, courtesy of her mother.

"Hey, mom!"

"Narkissa! I'm so glad you're back!"

"Me too. Even happier than I am about getting away from London."

Her father lived in a big stately townhouse in London. He was a muggle born who liked to pretend he was a pure-blood. Sasha didn't have a very high opinion of him, to say the least. He mother, on the other hand, was far more interesting. She was Russian, with an almost exclusively pure-blood heritage dating back to the middle ages. She had thick black hair that waved all the way down to her waist, red lips that were always curved into a smile, and brown eyes that sparkled like the Ionian Sea the Canary Cottage overlooked.

Growing up, one of Sasha's greatest fears was that she would one day look like her father; freakishly tall with an everlasting look of exhaustion on her face. Luckily, she looked very much like a younger version of her mother, except that she had her paternal grandmother's sharp grey eyes, rather than the soft brown ones she loved so much.

Apparently, in his youth, her father had been an artist, who on a trip to Russia met her mother on a train. Sasha could not imagine her stuck up father as an artist. She would have to take her mother's word for it. After their divorce, Valeska (Sasha's mother) moved to her beloved Greece, a place she had only ever dreamed of living in.

She took up residence on a large island, the second largest of the Ionian Islands in Greece. Her home, so affectionately called 'Canary Cottage' because of it's bright yellow paint, was hardly a cottage. Half of it was built into a rocky edge, the other half overlooked the spectacular St. Georgios Bay. Most of the other houses in the surrounding area were white, with coloured shutters. The muggles of the area loved the friendly yellow home. Whenever muggles went to visit the nearby chapel, her mother always invited them in for refreshments. Everyone loved Valeska, especially Sasha.

"Narkissa, please, he's your father."

"Not that he wants to be. He didn't even say goodbye."

Her mother paused for a moment, before continuing in Russian, "_I will have a talk with him._"

"No, mum, please don't", replied Sasha in English, "I don't mind being left alone. I prefer it to spending time with him."

"_Narkissa..._"

"Please, mum? Promise?"

"_Alright_," she sighed after a pause, "but I wish you would try a bit harder with him", she finished, in a slightly accented English.

Sasha smile. She loved her mom.

"Come, let's have lunch on the roof." Valeska whipped out her wand, waved it in the general direction of the fridge, and led her daughter up the only stair case in the house that wasn't build into the 'stone' part of the house, as they called it. That is, the part of the house that was dug out of the escarpment the house was built on.

The bit of roof above the kitchen was flat and covered in white gravel. It had a 180 degree view of the Ionian Sea on one side, and an 180 degree view of Kerkyra on the other. Shortly after sitting down at the round marble table in the center of the roof, an assortment of fruits, bread, and oil followed them up.

The talked about how their summers had been, including what new clothes and makeup they had bought since they had last seen each other, which had been two months ago. She had stayed with her mother a month after finishing school. That was the arrangement: holidays during the school year and one month of summer with her mother, two months of summer with her dad. It amounted to pretty much the same thing, but the time at her father's felt excruciatingly long.

Finally, when the oil they had dipped their bread in ran out, Valeska's spoke in a tone very different from the excited and happy one she had used during lunch. It was very gentle, but Sasha realized she was supposed to pay very close attention to whatever it was that her mother was about to say.

"Narkissa," she began, "I have something to tell you." She paused a moment, but when Sasha did not interrupt, she went on. "In Afionas," Sash recognized this as the small, near by town, "I have a friend named Ellie. She's an Australian photographer, and she invited me to go to Africa with her for a year to photograph giraffes."

Sasha's mouth dropped. "Wow, that's a little out of no where. I thought you were going to tell me you were engaged or something. I can honestly say I did not see that coming."

Valeska gave a small, guilty smile, "I told her I would love to go, but if you don't want me to, I won't."

"_Momma, of course I want you to go!_", Sasha said in Russian, "_I'll be in school for most of the time, and I always hate to think of you here all alone. I hope you have a great time!_"

Valeska's mouth curved into an even bigger smile than usual, showing her white teeth. But then it faded slightly.

"I'm not sure you quite understand, dearest. We will be camping together. I will be near her for almost the entire trip, and she is a muggle. That means I won't be able to use any magic, not even to contact you. No owls. Nothing to raise suspicion."

Sasha thought about guilting her mother into staying. How could she be expected to go a year without her? Instantly, a sense of shame and guilt swept over her. How could she be so selfish? Her mom clearly wanted to go. Who was she to stand in the way of that? Sasha tried to put on a brave face.

"That's fine, mum." Sasha was using a British accent. It often switched between a Russian accent, a Greek accent, and a British accent. She could speak all three languages fluently, but often she didn't bother trying to suppress any accent, no matter which one she was speaking.

Valeska could not hide her delight. She positively lit up, reaching across the table to squeeze her daughter's hand.

"When do you leave?"

"I will meet Ellie at the dock at 7 AM, the day after you leave."

"That soon? We should put some protection spell on the house, just in case."

"Yes. I have also asked the Nuns at the chapel to watch after the house, in case I ended up going."

Something suddenly occurred to Sasha. "Mum, can I still come home for Christmas and Spring Break, or do I have to go to my father's?"

Valeska considered the question a moment before saying, "You are an adult now. You can make your own choices."

Sasha beamed at her mother.

"Come now, little one, lets make sure you have everything ready for school tomorrow."


	2. Chapter 2

After a restful night, Sasha awoke around nine. Her room was just one of the many built into the island itself. There were various 'fake' windows around the house that showed enchanted ocean scapes, while all that was really there was wall. Sasha's room, however had a real window that overlooked the lower half of the island, including the rocky shore.

She unwillingly swung her legs over the side of her bed, abandoning its warmth for another four months. Her trunk lay in the middle of the floor, with some room left in case she got anything new at school. Sasha sighed and pushed herself up from the bed. Locking the lid of her trunk, she cast a non verbal spell on it, making it almost weightless so she could pull it easily on the back of her broom.

It was customary for the girls of _Enchanted Rose School for Young Witches_ to fly to the secret island which they shared with their brother school, _Barnabas Brixbee's School for Young Wizards_. The school had begun this tradition in 1572, when Enchanted Rose was first founded. Unfortunately, in 1692, when the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy was officially established, restrictions had to be implemented.

Every student who has attended Enchanted Rose or Barnabas Brixbee's would be more than familiar with an old shipwreck off the western coast of Erikoussa. At least, all the muggles could see was an old shipwreck, which for some strange reason, no one wanted to bother removing. A number of such protective spells had been cast on the shipwreck for the simple reason that it concealed the secret to how students could fly to school without being seen. The trick was, after appearing in the captain's room via means of floo powder, going to the bow of the ship. From that point a short of invisible channel existed, which led the students directly to their school. Whoever flew their broom in the tube could not be seen from outside of it. Invisible. Even if a muggle was swimming directly under the course, they wouldn't notice a thing.

Sasha looked about her room. It was built under the house, into the cliff, and had one window which overlooked the sea. She closed the circular window, grabbed her trunk, and left the white room. Sasha, barely conscious of what she was doing turned left down a hallway and dropped her trunk outside of the washroom. She had a cool shower and, afterward, put on her school uniform for the first time in three months. Carefully she pulled her green socks up to her knees. She then buckled up her green kilt and buttoned her short-sleeved blouse over a white camisole. Sasha tucked them both in to her kilt and then clipped on her green, plaid suspenders. Finally, Sasha tied the laces of her pointed black boots. She took one last look in the mirror before leaving the bathroom. Again, Sasha picked up her trunk and went up stairs, to the kitchen.

Valeska, who was already in the kitchen, smiled at her daughter. She was flipping strawberry pancakes with her wand.

"_Good morning, dearest_," she greeted in Russian.

"Good morning, mom," Sasha replied, stopping to give her mom a light kiss on the cheek. "Ah, that smells so good!" she announced, dropping her trunk yet again. Sasha decided her weightlessness spell had been a bit too strong, however, when her trunk began to hover. She put a bunch of bananas on top to weigh it down.

"I'm glad you think so. Then you can slice some fruit to put on top."

"I'm on it," said Sasha, who tore one of the bananas off the bunch and gathered the remaining strawberries that had managed to escape the pancake mix.

She went to the cutting board which was on the counter, next to the stairs that led up to the roof. The sun which poured down the stairway glinted off of the knife Sasha used to slice the fruit. When she was done, she put them in a glass bowl and set it on the table. She saw that her mother had gathered some fresh, bright yellow flowers sometime earlier in the morning and put them in a vase to decorate the kitchen table with. Valeska began to hum a local song as she reached for plates. Sasha got the syrup and utensils. Sasha loved the way she could work along side her mother without having to say a word. Her father would have tried to force an awkward conversation, if he chose to acknowledge her presence at all.

"Are you ready for school?" Valeska asked with keen interest.

"Physically yes. I'm packed and everything. Mentally, no."

Valeska smiled as she took a slice of strawberry from the glass bowl and popped it in her mouth. "Aren't you excited to see your friends?"

"Oh, well, yeah. I just don't think I can bare waking up at 6:30 to get ready for class."

"Нытик," Valeska said playfully. Bellyacher. "I had to get up at 5, do chores, and then I was _allowed_ to get ready for school.

"You did chores?" Sasha asked, surprised.

"Yes. It was awful. Every morning I would have to get up, go out to the chicken coop in nothing but my night gown, boots, and a sweater, and collect the chicken eggs. I also had a cow, named Bohdana who I had to milk."

"But you were rich. Really rich, weren't you? I thought you had dozens of house elves?"

"We were, and we did. My papa wanted to teach me the value of work."

"Didn't really work, did it?" Sasha said playfully, surveying the house which Valeska's father had bought his daughter after her divorce.

Valeska hook her raven head. "He's gone soft in his old age," she said in mock disapproval.

Sasha smiled. When she finished her breakfast and had helped her mother clean up the dishes, she went back downstairs and brushed her teeth. She attached her trunk to her broom and prepared to say a final farewell to her mother.

"_I'd like to make you promise to write every day, but I'm going to have to ask you to not write at all, I'm afraid."_ Valeska said, sadly.

"Not even once in a while? At Christmas?"

Valeska looked stricken. "No, I don't think it would be a good idea to risk it. Only send me an owl if it is truly, truly necessary. Absolutely dire. Promise me that?"

Sasha was tempted to say 'no', but instead she said, "I swear it. I guess muggle post is out of the question?"

"I don't think they deliver mail to the middle of nowhere, Narkissa." Sasha gave a weak, sad smile smile. "I love you, little one. Be good, like you are." She kissed her beautiful daughter's forehead.

"I love you, too, mum. I hope you have a great time in Africa." Sasha grabbed her broom as well as a handful of silver floo powder. "_The Foul Ghoul_, Erikoussa" she said, as she threw it down and felt green flames devour her.

Valeska's kitchen, like the rest of her home, was full of warm light. It took Sasha's eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness of the captain's cabin in the famous shipwreck, _The Foul Ghoul_. When they did adjust, Sasha was not surprised to see a timid house elf standing in the room, waiting to help first years make their first time journey.

"Hello, miss," the elf squeaked. Sasha realized she must be quite young. "You are familiar with the procedure?"

"Yep. Out of the captain's cabin, follow the corridor, turn left at the end, go up the stairs, walk to the bow, fly straight."

The house elf beamed at her. "Have a safe journey, miss!"

"Thank you," Sasha said, as she left the room.

As she stepped near the bow of the ship, a sickening feeling in her stomach told Sasha she was invisible to the outside world. She threw a leg over the side of her broom and took off. Sasha felt the invisible tube thing guide her along. Despite knowing that she couldn't fall into the ocean because of the invisible tunnel, it didn't prevent the splash of ocean waves from hitting her. Almost the moment Sasha kicked off from the ship, she got a splash of salt water in the face. It was refreshing now, but she after an hour she would be sick of it.

The wind was strong over the ocean, and soon enough Sasha's uniform was soaked. She hoped her trunk was having better luck. Enchanted Rose seemed so far away.

Her beloved boarding school was an English one. It was founded by a Greek man in memory of his deceased English wife, who loved flowers. Hence Enchanted _Rose_. He had the gardeners plant flowers and trees and bushes everywhere. All of the girls at the school thought it was the most romantic thing they ever heard. It was built on a small island that is enchanted so that muggles could not see it, even if their ship crashed right into it. The chances of that happening were virtually non existent, however. Dozens of enchantments were placed on the island, the least of which kept muggles from going anywhere near it.

Enchanted Rose was not the only school on the island. An international school called _Barnabas Brixbee's School for Young Wizards_ lay just south east of Enchanted Rose_._ In between classes, on weekends, and until 11 o'clock at night, the boys and girls on the island are welcome to socialize, though it was required that they attend classes and sleep in their own separate schools.

Being a former student of Hogwarts, naturally Sasha's father wanted her to go there. He nearly forced her to, but Valeska came to her rescue, insisting she be able to choose. This was at a time when Brian (Sasha's father) was hoping he could win her back. He gave up the endeavor shortly after.

Sasha had been flying for about an hour. The combination of strong wind and hot sun had already dried her and her soaking uniform. The height of the sun told her it was after 11. She was hoping to make it to school before lunch. Just as visions of Greek salad and sliced French bread came to her mind, she saw her wonderful island appear on the horizon. She saw several people ahead of her approaching it, a few even landing. Looking behind her, she saw several more, just dots across skyline.

Sasha swung one leg over her broom so she could ride it in the proper, lady-like manner which was expected at Enchanted Rose. She didn't slow down, however until she was within twenty yards of it, at which time she made a regal entrance befitting a young Enchanted Rose witch. As she lowered herself, several teachers greeting the students applauded her elegant entrance. She landed gracefully in the stone court yard, where she was promptly tackled the second she stepped off her broom by her friend, Lysandra Hariko.

She was a petite girl of Japanese descent. Sasha had never met anyone quite like Lysandra, or Sandy, as she was more often referred to. She was vibrant, exciting, neurotic, and generally amusing to watch. Like Sasha, she had black hair that reached to her mid back. Unlike Sasha, it was straight instead of wavy, and more than often had a variety of colors in it. Today she had horizontal stripes of violent purple on select pieces of her hair. Evidently, she was going for a scene kind of look. The same teachers who had applauded the arrival of Sasha were now tittering to themselves about the disagreeable Sandy.

"Sashy! You can never leave me for so long ever again! Do you promise?" Sandy loosened her gripping hug enough to look up at Sasha's reply.

"Sure. At least until next year."

Sandy hid her face back in Sasha's shoulder, and, though it was considerable muffled, said, "No! What is wrong with you people? Why does everyone say that?"

"So the two of us constitute as 'everyone' now?" From under the shade of their favorite pomegranate tree stepped Phillippa Godfrey. With her short, chestnut brown hair framing her round face, Phil was constantly smiling. Sasha swore she did it in her sleep.

"At least until Davey and Selena get here", Sandy said calmly, releasing Sasha as though nothing had happened.

"That's still only four people."

"But they're the only four people who matter to me."

"Awww, that's sweet, Sandy."

"Not really. It just means you suck way less than everyone else."

Phillippa sighed. Even as she did so, she was still smiling.

Sasha gave Phil a hug that was returned in a pleasant surprise.

"You hardly ever give hugs!"

"Well, now's the time to start. Anyway, I think I've changed a lot this summer. I certainly missed you guys."

"I'm hungry. And I'm tired of waiting. Can we go in and get food _now_, Phil?", Sandy cut in.

"_You_ were the one who insisted we wait for everyone! I wanted to go in ages ago! Oh, why am I bothering, I already know you know it was your idea."

"But now I think it was a bad one, and I don't want it anymore. You can have it now," said Sandy.

"Gee, thanks."

The two continued to bicker as they made their way through the large courtyard and into the dining hall. The exterior of the building was covered in pink roses, which even crept in through the glassless windows. The dining hall was, like the rest of the school, made from crude, light grey bricks. The large stones weren't even held together with mortar, but remained together only because of their weight.

Inside, the room was dominated by over twenty tables, each able to seat 12 people comfortably. The tables and chairs were made of dark wood. Thick coats of varnish made them very shiny. Food was always served via house-elf. Before every meal, they came out in a strange sort of parade to put their large platters and bowls on the tables. For seven years Sasha had been exposed to it, yet every time she saw it, it still seemed funny to her. The house-elves' heads barely reached the table top, yet they managed to agilely navigate their way around the crowded room and still do their job quickly. It took less than fifteen seconds in all to return to the kitchen, which was located down what looked like a stone root cellar at the far side of the Dining Hall.

"Oh sweet Jesus!", Sandy breathed, pretending to fan herself with her hand. Dane Osborn had just walked past in his usual long strides, straight for his Headmaster, who was sipping tea near a window with Professor Mulberry, the old Etiquette teacher.

He would have made a perfect poster boy for the sexy, mysterious, brooding guy type. As such, he never accepted a girlfriend (although thousands would give their wand hand to have the honor), and he could be very disagreeable. He didn't get along very well with the boys at his school, either. If they bothered him in the slightest, he tended to hex them. Many of them were quite frightened of him.

"Earth! To! Sasha!", said Sandy, exasperated. "Wow, finally. Anyway, Lena is here!"

For the first time, Sasha noticed Selena Castwick, her best friend.

"Way to go, Sash," she said, trying to talk through her tinkling laugh. "I think you have a bit of drool on your chin."

Sasha immediately checked her chin for drool, which made Lena laugh ever more. Sasha laughed too. They enclosed themselves in a tight embrace for several seconds before letting go so they could both examine and tell the other how good they look.

"You know what?", said Sandy, in a peculiar way, "This is our seventh year at this school, and we don't even know what happens to our luggage once we drop it off!"

"Yes we do. The house-elves put it in our rooms for us."

"Oh, _really_? Have you ever _seen _that series of unlikely events take place, Phillippa Godfrey?"

"Well... no... but, first year Headmistress Crump-"

"Ah-ha!", Sandy interrupted, "So for all we know sneaky little elves could be taking our luggage!"

Everyone was quiet for a brief moment, until Lean said, "Sandy, sneaky little elves _do_ take our luggage."

"Well, I'm not buying into that hoodwink. I had better go watch the luggage to see what will happen to it, right?" Sandy turned quickly and rushed off in the general direction of the luggage pile.

"I always think she can't get any weirder, and then that happens", Sasha had one eyebrow furrowed, the other raised in a high, thin arch. A look of utter confusion was written on both her face, and Lean's.

Phil's face conveyed a look of understanding. "Miles Boyd told her he'd be here at 12:30. She's probably gone off to find a quiet place to snog him."

"No way!", Sasha couldn't believe it.

"Miles Boyd?!" said Lena, in equal surprise.

"Yeah. She pulled him this summer."

"Damn", said Sasha and Selena in unison. They were both fairly attractive, they thought. Why couldn't they get boyfriends?

"It's not you fault, dears," said Phil in a kind voice, "it's just because guys are afraid to ask you two out."

"Excuse me?" asked Sasha.

"Oh, like you don't remember. In first year you hexed every boy who asked you out."

"That's because _every_ guy asked us out. They were probably playing a mean prank on us, you know?" Lean turned to Sasha for some back up.

"Yeah," continued Sasha, "like all the guys conspired to annoy us."

"Sorry, girls, they weren't playing around. It's a pity you don't have boyfriends. You're both so gorgeous."

Sasha and Lean looked at each other. They thought they were pretty alright looking, but not 'gorgeous'. And yet, as they looked at each other, they both secretly agreed with Phillippa that the other was, indeed, gorgeous.

They were actually almost opposite in every respect. Lena had blonde hair, which she charmed almost every day into curls. She had big, expressive blue eyes. She was also very, very skinny. She was only 5'6", but she could have made a great a model. Sasha, on the other had, while quite slim, had a lot more curves. Her thick, black hair waved down her back. She had sharp, grey eyes with high cheek bones. Sasha also had a sharp chin, which have her a sly look. If a trashy magazine were to describe her, it would be as a "sultry seductress".

"As for me, I have to go find Darran Finnigan," Phillippa announced. She giggled a little before bounding off to look for her new love interest.

Selena and Sasha sat down miserably at a table.

"At this rate, I'll be a virgin when I get married", sighed Lena.

"At this rate, I won't _get_ married", mourned Sasha. They were quiet for a few seconds, until, "Hey Lena, guess what?"

"What?"

"My mom's in Africa. Weird, huh?" Lena, who had been pressing her nail into the varnish on the table, snapped her golden head up so her blue eyes met Sasha's grey ones.

"Africa? Why the bloody hell...?"

Sasha explained about the giraffes, and her mom's photographer friend.

"Wow, well, congrats to her." Lean was still a little shocked. Sasha could sympathize completely."What are you going to do on holidays?"

"Mum says I can just go home."

"Yeah, which one?"

Sasha had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "My father's house is _not_ my home. I am so sick of that prick, I can't even tell you. He is so obsessed with his job, it's unbelievable! Well, I've told you before, sometimes he actually brings the beasts home with him. Not even just to sign forms and stuff, that should be left at work as it is, but sometimes he invites them to actually transform in the basement. Not that it matters he is putting his one and only daughter in to mortal danger every time he does that."

"He doesn't _like_ werewolves, does he?"

"I don't think anyone_ likes_ werewolves. I know he has been trying to form some good relations with them. With monsters like Fenrir Greyback around it's really hard convincing the hard core werewolves to view humans as friends. Of course, why humanity wants to befriend werewolves is beyond me. Personally, I think we should just kill them off now, that way we can just be finished with the disease."

"That's a bit harsh..."

"Fenrir Greyback positions him self by the homes of children at the full moon so he can infect them!"

"Yeah, but you're saying we should kill diseased children because Fenrir is evil?"

"Lena, you know what I mean." Sasha sighed. She tried again, "Maybe we could just bump off the dangerous ones like Fenrir."

Lean laughed, "You are heartless! I never took you for a murderer"

"It isn't murder if it isn't a human. Werewolves, in their transformed state, are not considered human."

"Seriously?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Wow. I didn't know that. My dad isn't really as devoted to the law as yours is, though."

"Yeah, Lena, I'm really lucky to have a great dad like him" Sasha couldn't help being sarcastic. She was particularly annoyed that she was being so argumentative with Lena.

"I'm sorry Lena. Its just, when I think about my dad, I turn into this horrible person. I'm sorry."

Lena smiled. "I've noticed. That you spaz a lot when you talk about your dad, that is. I've barely met him, so I can't really talk."

"Lucky you. The worst part is he's so great to everyone else, they wonder what's wrong with _me_. Ask why _I _have an attitude problem. It's not like I like being the anti-social, miserable bitch I am when he's around. But that's the only side of me I think they'll ever see. I can barely stand to be in jolly-old England, because it reminds me of _him_.

Lean, good friend that she was, just agreed without question.

"Don't worry, sweetie, you're seventeen. That's the legal age in Britain. You don't have to see him ever again, if you don't want to."

This thought had occurred to Sasha before. She drifted off into a fantasy land (for the umpteenth time since the start of summer) where she wouldn't see her father again for the rest of her life.

She was brought back to reality by a pair of black eyes staring directly at her from across the Dinning Hall. Was Dane Osborn looking at _her_? Surely not. He was well out of her league. He was out of everyone's league, now that she came to think about it.

"Um, Sash?", came Selena's uncertain voice.

"Hmmm"? Sasha was barely paying attention. Dane was still staring at her.

"Your father is here."


	3. Chapter 3

Sasha's heart dropped.

"What?"

"You... Your father is standing in the court yard," said Lena incrediously. "Talk about speak of the _devil_, huh?"

Sasha glanced over her soulder quickly. Sure enough, her father was standing in the middle of the court yard with Headmistress Crumplebottom.

"Shit", she breathed. "What should I do?"

"Go talk to him. And quick. Get him the hell out of here."

Sasha looked once more at Dane. For some reason his presence, the fearlessness with which he presented himself to the world, gave her strength, too. And yet at the same time, his black eyes made her knees weak. She kind of liked it, though. It wasn't easy to worry about her father when the black eyes of Dane demanded she think only of him, especially after dreaming of him for seven years.

She lifted herself fromt he table, feeling more confident. She tried to mimic the fierce way that Dane walked, although she knew only he could be the rightful master of that stride. Still, she kept her eyes fixed on where she wanted to go, her head held high, and her chin pointed slightly out. The effect must have been pretty good, anyway, because her father took a small step back, before he tried his best to attempt a smile. It looked more like he was having a stroke. All the same, it was Sasha's turn to be taken aback. It got weirder.

"Hello, _darling_." He seemed to be trying to sound like a doteing father. Maybe for her Headmistress' sake? But why would he do that? It was so out of character for him to care about what anyone thought (except when his career reputation was a stake, but surely this little vist had nothing to do with that?).

The Headmistress, Professor Crumplebottom, stepped forward. She had grey frizzy hair, pulled back tight into a bun, round wire glasses, a slightly wrinkled face, and was yearing one of her usual black Victorian era dresses, despite the heat. In her hands were a pile of sealed envelopes.

"Ah, Miss. Winchcombe! Your father here would like to have a few words with you. Under the circumstances, I've decided to give you your dorm assignment early. I thought it might be nice for you to talk in a bit of privacy. You requested the same room mates as last year, correct?"

"Yes, I did. Sandy, Phil, and Lena."

"Lovely! Well, here you are," the Headmistress handed her an envelope with a piece of paper that had her dorm number and timetable for the year, as well a big iron key. She leaned in a little closer and said in a loud whisper, "I think it best if I give the other girl's their keys later."

Sasha just nodded. "Thank you, Headmistress."

The old woman waved her hands, bashfully, "Not to worry dear! Oh, such a good girl." She leaned backwards a little so she could touch her father's arm. "Mr. Winchcombe, you must be so proud! She's a lovely girl. Well, a lovely young lady, I suppose I 'ought say!"

"Yes", he said, as though something was caught in his throat, "her mother and I are very proud."

Professor Crumplebottom gave one last joyful laugh before saying, "Right, well, I'll leave you to it, then!" After a strange look from Mr. Winchcombe, she wondered off. Maybe back to her office, which was on the third floor of the main building.

"It says I'm in room 15. Come on."

Sasha led her father through one of the stone arches which surrounded the court, headed for her new room assignment. It wasn't a far walk, but it seemed to take forever with him following her. It was on the fourth floor of the tower that was situated next to the greenhouses. It was one of the best residents. It only had three dorm rooms in it, and it was in a beautiful location. The only thing was, it would take a little longer for Sasha to get to class.

They had to enter the door at the base of the building, climb the spiraling staircase, passing two doors on the way up, but finally, there they were. Room 15. Her new dorm. She unlocked it to find that the house elves had already brought up their trunks. She pushed hers to the window overlooking the greenhouses, from which you could also see the Mediterranean Sea.

After moving her trunk, she sat on her new bed. Her father sat across from her on one of the three remaining unclaimed beds.

"Narkissa...", he inhaled a great quantity of air,"... I'm not sure you to tell you this."

Sasha did not like the feeling she was getting from this. "Didn't you just come to say goodbye? A proper goodbye, I mean?"

He looked up at her surprised. "No, no, of course not," he mumbled, "if that was the case I would have just sent a owl."

Sasha knew perfectly well he hadn't come to say a proper 'goodbye', but she was slightly offended all the same. "It's just you looked so eager to speak to me as I was leaving."

"I was. I have something rather important to tell you. Its something I wanted to say in person."

"_That's a first"_, thought Sasha bitterly.

"I wanted to catch you at your mother's, before you started school, but-"

"But you knew she wouldn't put up with you in her home."

Her father stared at her with an unreadable expression on his face. "Yes, something like that", he said, in an equally unreadable tone.

His fake, gentle tone was gone. "Narkissa, as you know, I take my job very seriously."

_'Understatement of the century',_ she thought again, but said nothing.

"I've tried my best to hide it from you, but the werewolf situation isn't going very well."

'_You couldn't have tried that hard_.'

"Actually, it's going very poorly".

'_Gosh, I hadn't realized_.'

"There is one werewolf, in particularly, who has been causing me some grief."

'_Could it possibly, by any slight chance, be, oh I dunno? Fenrir Greyback?_'

"Fenrir Greyback, is his name."

'_Wow. would not have guessed.' _

"Now, I know you're thinking 'but, what has this got to do with me?'"

'_Actually, no I wasn't you great prick, but thanks for telling me what I 'ought to be thinking.'_

"The fact is, we've been trying to win his loyalty for sometime now, so that the other, more vicious werewolves, will follow his example. You know the sort of thing."

'_Thank you for telling me what I _know,_ now. And for the record, all werewolves are vicious you dumb-fuck'_

"Unfortunately, he does not trust our intentions."

_'Smart, for a beast. I bet he saw right through you.'_

"As it is, he has threatened to bite several ministry officials' children, because he does not feel werewolves are treated either equally or fairly."

_'Because they aren't, as it should be. Inferi are more human than werewolves.'_

"Actually, I am under the impression he thinks werewolves are superior to wizards."

_'You think wizards are superior to muggles, so what's the difference?. An evil bastard like you would do no different in his situation.'_

"All the same, I tried my best to ease his worries, but he insisted that wizards have no respect for werewolves, so he would teach us to fear them, instead. He kept swearing that he would made good on his promise to attack the children. Left with no other alternative, I did the only thing I could. I decided to prove that we saw werewolves as equals."

_'How did a dumb fuck like you manage that?'_

"And so, I gave him my word that within a year's time, I would marry my one and only daughter off to a werewolf."

_'................................................................'_

_'................................................................'_

_'................................................................'_

"You told him _what?_" asked Sasha, in a restrained voice. It was as calm as she could make it, but even still her father was surprised with how dangerous and cold it sounded. He clearly supposed she would go along with whatever order he gave her. But she couldn't think like that, she needed to keep a cool head, for now at least. She tried her best to contain her anger, but it was boiling up in her, driving her mad.

"You heard me, Narkissa. You will not fight me on this. Now it's not just the lives of children at stake."

Her jaw clenched up when she heard the first two sentences, but she was curious about the third so she asked, "Who else's' life have you risked, then?" This time she almost hissed her words.

"Yours. If you do not comply he will kill you. He also has promised to double the number of children he original guaranteed to attack. You should know, he has been known to go after families, so he will probably try to kill your mother and myself, as well. I have put a lot on the line for this. My entire career. If I settle things with Fenrir, I'll be promoted to head of the entire Being Division. In a few years I would be . Don't ruin this chance.

Sasha could feel her wand in the pocket of her jumper. She knew the killing curse. Never had she had an honest to god desire to murder someone, but now the offer was more than tempting.

When she didn't answer right away, Mr. Winchcombe assumed that it meant she had agreed so far, not that she was so absolutely furious she was contemplating murdering him.

Blissfully unaware, he continued, "I am aware that werewolves can be quite brash, or not up to the standards to which you may hold a normal wizard. As it is, I have... hm, let's just say, connections," he smiled, as though she should be impressed. "I am on fairly good terms with a particular werewolf who remains a reasonably well accepted member of society. After I explained to him the circumstance, and after quite a lot of begging on my part, Remus Lupin has agreed to marry you. Well, Narkissa, have you anything to say?"

She was quite for a moment. Her eyes bore into him like daggers. Finally, in a dark whisper, she said, "Get out."

"Excuse me?"

"Precisely," she said louder, but not loosing the edge to her voice, "you may excuse yourself from my home. Get out."

"I don't like your tone Nar-"

"I don't like your presence in my home. Get. Out." She said this louder, still. She stood up, and pointed towards the door with her left arm outstretched.

He stood up, too. "I hope your not planning on being difficult about this, Narkissa."

_'Difficult? I'll show him fucking difficult!'_

In a swift movement, Sasha grabbed her wand from her pocket, and pointed it directly at his throat.

"If I were you, I would go directly to the Headmistress' office, throw down some floo powder, and never come the fuck back", she said, viciously. Her father's hands were raised slightly, showing that he was defenseless. He was lead to the door, backwards, by Sasha, who still had her wand pressed so hard into his neck, he had trouble breathing easily.

"Open it", she commanded him. Wordlessly, he opened the door. "Leave, and don't come back, if you know what's good for you." He sidestepped out the door.

Sasha didn't see him go down the staircase because she had shut the door immediately and locked it. She heard him slam the door of the building and the crunch of gravel under his feet as he marched away. She drew in a deep breath of air and then gently lowered herself to the floor. She pulled her knees up close to her face, grabbed her hair in her hands, and before she knew it, started sobbing.


	4. Chapter 4

Sasha had been on the wooden floor crying for over half an hour. She just couldn't believe it. She knew her father was controlling, but to the extent of forcing her into an arranged marriage with a _werewolf?_ He was out of line this time. Well, he was out of line a lot of the time, but this was.... Sasha couldn't even thing of a word strong enough. It was outrageous. That was it; Outrageous. And criminal. Unfair. _Sick_. As a child, she had always been ashamed that her father worked with werewolves. Now he thought she would marry one? Well, no, she wouldn't.

She pulled herself off the floor and walked into the bathroom. Gripping either side of the sink so hard her knuckles turned white, Sasha stared at herself in the mirror. Her grey eyes were red and bloodshot. The mascara she had applied so carefully that morning ran in watery streaks down her face. Her black hair was a mess from tearing at it.

Sasha almost burst into tears again. She felt like a bitch. She was a bitch. She was as ugly as her reflection. Without really thinking, she shoved the heel of her right hand into the mirror. It didn't break but she felt a little better. She tried again with her left first, but it only resulted in an unsatisfying crack. She started beating on the glass with both hands with increasing vigor until the sink was covered with blood and shards of silver. She barely noticed she was screaming.

She fell to the bathroom floor in tears again. It wasn't because her hands hurt, or even that her father had set her up with a werewolf. It was because her father didn't love her and she knew she deserved it. She let one mistake eight years ago ruin the relationship with her father.

Sasha snapped out of her thoughts when she heard the crunch on glass to her right. A black boot stood on the fine powder of crushed glass.

"Jesus Christ", Dane Osborn swore quietly, looking around.

"Dane? What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you, then I heard screaming. Sasha, get up."

With a little help from Dane, Sasha stood. He gently took her bloody hands, pointed his wand at them, and said, "_Vulnera Sanatur._" The blood on the ground and sink flew back into her hands and the gashes closed themselves. He pointed his wand at the frame of what had just been a perfectly good mirror. "_Reparo._" A similar result happened to the mirror. As though time was moving backwards, the shards of glass flew up and fitted themselves perfectly back into the mirror.

The bathroom looked spotless and Sasha's hands, while a little stiff, didn't have a scratch on them. While she was admiring Dane's fine wandmanship, Sasha was startled as she found herself being dragged unceremoniously by her arm into the main room. Dane practically pushed her onto an unclaimed bed while he paced the room several times. He stopped after a while and turned to her.

"Look," he said, "you're going to tell me what that was all about, or else I'm going to go to your Headmistress, right now. I don't want to over react, but that was pretty fucked up, Sasha, even by my standards."

Sasha felt sick. She didn't want anyone to think she was psycho, but what else would someone think if they heard about this?

"Alright. Promise you won't tell anyone, though?"

"Absolutely not," said Dane as he sat on the foot board of another bed, "but you're going to tell me anyway. Then I'll judge whether anyone needs to find out or not, so start talking."

Sasha told Dane all about her arranged marriage, but he didn't seem satisfied.

"You're telling me you threw a tantrum because your dad is trying to save the lives of children?" he asked after she finished her story.

"He's not doing it for the children, he's doing it for his job!"

"The job where he tries to stop werewolves from hurting people and yet help them lead meaningful lives when they aren't transformed?" Dane was shaking his head at this point.

"He doesn't see it like that! He sees it as his personal pathway to success."

"And you know this how? You just told me you never talk to him anymore."

"Let's just say he doesn't have the greatest track record for prioritizing people first."

"Any particular reason you say this?"

"Yes."

"Let's hear it then. Unless you convince me you're not a nutter with this, I've got to tell you, I'm going to your Headmistress."

"Fine! Alright." Sasha was getting fed up. She bowed her head so she wouldn't have to look at Dane. She suddenly thought it sounded stupid. "I used to love my dad a lot, but it just felt like he worked all the time. When my parents divorced, I blamed him. I started to resent not just his career, but everything else he did, too. I think eventually he just got sick of trying with me, and he threw himself even further into his work."

"That's it?"

Sasha looked up at him blankly. "Yeah. You know what? Just forget it. You just don't understand."

"No, I think I understand perfectly. Selfish little girl got jealous when daddy tried to be a responsible adult."

"It has nothing to do with responsibility! He was _never_ there," Sasha practically shouted. "He worked extra hours, and weekends. Some nights he didn't even come home. He's missed every one of my birthdays since I was 6. He didn't even go to his own father's funeral!"

Dane rubbed his face with both his hands. "I'm going to do you a favor and pretend I didn't even hear that. I've got to say, I'm surprised at how childish you are."

"You don't think that's a good enough reason?"

He laughed. Did she detect bitterness? "No, Sasha, I really fucking don't. I think you're only seeing this from your perspective and you should be thanking God you have the father you do. Your so fucking lucky and you don't even see it."

"I'm _lucky_?"

Dane stood up angrily and walked over to Sasha so that he towered over her. "My poor excuse for a father kicked me out of the house when I was 12. Do you know why?" When Sasha failed to give an answer he continued. "It's because I set the couch on fire while he was passed out drunk on it. Now why would I do a thing like that, Sasha?" When Sasha didn't say anything he kicked the bed frame hard enough to crack the wood. "I asked you a fucking question."

"I don't know! You know I don't know!" Sasha said angrily, trying to mask her fear.

"It's because one night I got fed up with all his bullshit. You see, Sasha, not all men are good like your dad. They don't all go to work and try to support their families. Some men, like my dad, are bad. They beat the shit out of their wives and abuse their children. Now, I can't help but remember when you were telling me your little sap story that you referred to you dad as 'controlling'. My mother hasn't been allowed to leave her house for four years. That, Sasha, is fucking controlling." Dane threw himself on Sandy's bed.

"Dane... I sorry."

He looked at her as though she had just said something outrageous. "I don't want you to be sorry, Sasha! I want you to grow up a little. Scratch that: a lot."

"Dane, you must be crazy if you think I like things the way they are between me and my dad! For years now I haven't even been able to be civil with my dad. I would do anything to have at least that, but he hates me. And I deserve it."

"Oh, stop feeling sorry for yourself! There is a world of difference between wishing for something and actually trying to get it. Prove to your dad you aren't the little brat you've been acting like. Show some maturity."

In a quiet voice, Sasha asked, "Do you think that would work?"

For the first time since he had come in, Dane's expression softened. "Yeah, I do."

She was quiet for a moment. "I don't want to marry him, Dane."

"Then don't." Dane was lying back on Sandy's bed with his hands under his head.

Her head snapped up. "Then what was all that about proving to my dad I'm not a brat?"

"Not agreeing to enter into an arranged marriage is not being a brat. Forcing your father out of your room at wand point when he comes to discuss the option is. Next time, tell him, like an adult, that you aren't comfortable with the idea. If you do it that way, he might be a little more inclined to help you out. You have a year to come up with alternatives."

The room was silent for what felt like a long time to Sasha. Finally, Dane broke the silence. "Can't they just arrest him? Fenrir?"

Sasha shook her head. "I don't know much about this situation, but I doubt it. Werewolves, in their transformed state aren't considered human, so if the attack someone, you can't arrest them. It would like be arresting a dog for biting someone. So, because he doesn't intend to attack the kids in his human form, whether or not he can be arrested is sure to be really controversial. There is always the Werewolf Capture Unit, which is part of the Beast Division, but it can only capture werewolves when they are in their transformed state, and they let them go once they turn back into humans."

There was another brief spell of silence. Sasha tried to racked her brain, thinking of loop holes, but she found none. Eventually, she gave up for a time and instead asked, "Dane, why did you come here?"

"Well, actually I came to ask you if you wanted to go to the Opening Feast with me."

"Oh, I forgot all about it! Wait, you _never_ go to the Opening Feast." She eyed him suspiciously.

Sasha had always liked the Opening Feast. It was held out side, in the school's most important garden; the rose garden. Both schools attended. Tables and chairs were always set up, the food was always especially good, and afterwards there was a dance and fireworks. It ended at midnight, when the dorm assignments were handed out (although, thanks to her dad, she already had hers). Sasha could completely see someone like Dane hating it, though.

"Yeah, but I thought it might not be bad going with you."

"Me?" Sasha couldn't believe it. She had spent a good six years of her live fantasizing about this guy. Now, in the most unlikely of circumstances he asks her to the Opening Feast? "You just spent a good 20 minutes telling me what a selfish brat I am."

"If I didn't like you, I wouldn't have bothered." He sighed, "If you're not too pissed at me, I would still like to go with you."

Sasha thought it over. "I don't really feel up to going to the feast."

Slightly disappointed, Dane simply said, "I understand."

"Do you want to do something else?"

"Tonight?" Sasha nodded. The corner of Dane's mouth curved upwards."Yeah."

"Dane?"

"Hm?"

"Are you going to tell anyone?"

He thought it over for a minute. "No. But you have to write an apology to your dad."

This thought had occurred to Sasha before. "Yeah. I thought I probably should."

He gave a mirthless laugh. "Well, that's a start."

"You know what? I'll write it right now." She hopped off the bed and threw open her own trunk. She rifled through it until she had a quill, ink, and parchment. She seated herself cross legged on the bed and smoothed the parchment over her quilt. Dane moved to the side of her bed so he could read over her shoulder. Sasha dipped her brown quill into the black ink and began to scratch words onto the parchment.

_Father,_

_I write to you now to express my deep regrets for my behavior. I do not limit this to the confrontation in my dorm, but to my selfish actions in the past. If you truly believe that this werewolf plan is the best course of action, I will be willing to discuss it further._

_Your apologetic daughter, _

_Narkissa._

"A little formal. Stiff. Not bad, though. Are you going to send it now?"

"The owlery doesn't open until classes officially start."

"You can use my owl. He's in my room."

"You sure?"

"Well yeah, that's what I bought him for. Come on."

Sasha happily bounced off her bed. Had she been crying half an hour ago? It didn't seem possible. Dane - sensible, honest, blunt Dane- had done more for her than she could ever say.

But when Sasha went to the door to leave, she realized it was lying on the floor, black with burn marks..

"Oh, yeah, "said Dane, nonchalantly, scratching the back of his neck, "Sorry about that."


	5. Chapter 5

"His name is Hector," Dane told her from his bed.

The Barnabas Brixbee wizards received their dorm assignments upon arrival. The school was much smaller, with only about one hundred students, but after the third year, all the boys got a private room. There was only one window, in Dane's room, from which if someone stuck their head out and looked directly down would see large, salty waves breaking upon the rock. It faced East, and hanging in front of it was the owl, Hector, perched in his large, shiny cage.

Since her own owl had died a few years previously, Sasha could not bare to replace her. Dane's owl was quite nice, though. He was soft and didn't nip at fingers. His yellow orb-like eyes looked at her sleepily as she stroked his fluffy breast.

"Do you have something I can tie the letter with? A piece of string?"

"Yeah, just a sec." Dane leaped off his bed and went over to his dresser. After rifling through a brown backpack on the top, he pulled out a leather strap. "Here," he said offering the small piece of leather to Sasha.

"Thanks. Can you hold this?" Sasha held out the letter to Dane as she took the strap from him. Carefully, she tied it around Hector's thin leg. She turned to take back the letter, but Dane was reading it, a confused expression on his face.

"What is it?"

"Why did you sign your name as 'Narkissa'?"

It suddenly dawned on Sasha that Dane had never heard her real name.

"Because it is my name," answered Sasha truthfully. "Only my parents still use it, though."

"What the hell kind of name is _Narkissa_?"

"I don't know. What the hell kind of name is Dane? It reminds me of a dog."

"It's Dutch for Daniel". He raised his eyebrows indifferently, "And it reminds _me_ of royalty."

She laughed. "It would. Anyway, Narkissa is Greek. It means 'daffodil'." She finished tying the brief letter securely to Hector's right leg.

"Where does your dad live, _Narkissa_?" Dane said playfully, relishing the taste of her name on his tongue.

She smiled. "14 Aberwake Avenue, London."

"You heard her, go on". Hector hooted subserviently as he took off out the window.

"So," said Dane, throwing himself on his bed once more, "what do you want to do tonight?"

"Well," said Sasha thinking carefully, "I'd say lets go to the beach, but there will probably be a bunch of couples from the feast snogging there."

Dane shifted slightly on the bed. "Lets just stay here then. In fact," he said as he swung his legs over the side of his bed, "you can help me unpack."

"Will do," she said with a big smile on her face. Sasha was more than pleasantly surprised to receive this opportunity. She hadn't heard of any other girl even being invited into Dane Osborn's room, let alone given permission to go through his stuff. It would be a lie to say she wasn't excited.

He had two trunks and a backpack, Sasha noted jealously. It wasn't a particularly large room, but Dane had far more space than Sasha did in her shared dorm. And of course, by extension, the ability to pack more stuff.

Dane flicked his wand lazily causing one of the trunks to fly open. Things weren't so much 'packed' as they were 'tossed in'. His clothes were crumpled and mixed in with various items such as spell books, broken quills, empty ink wells, and other objects Sasha couldn't begin to guess the function of.

_'Only a guy's packing job could turn out like this,'_ Sasha thought to herself.

After a couple minutes unpacking, Sasha noticed a trend in Dane's chosen possessions: they were mostly books. In fact, the top layer of his trunk seemed to be the only space which held clothing.

"Do you think you brought enough books?" Sasha asked kneeling on the floor examining a brown tattered book with no exterior writing.

"You can never have too many."

"Hey, these are muggle books. Muggle books about witches. Aren't they?"

"Yeah," was his immediate reply. When Sasha continued to stare at him, he decided to go into more detail.

"You remember how I told you my dad kicked me out:?" Sasha nodded. "Well, after, I had no where to go. I hitchhiked around a bit. Eventually I ended up in this dilapidated village." He smiled, embarrassed and rubbed his neck. "I found this cat in the street, and when the owner came to look for him, I mistook her for a witch."

"What do you mean?" Sasha asked, obviously confused.

"Look," he said, beginning to gesture his hands indistinctly, "it was night time, and raining a little bit. She was wearing a pointed hat and a cloak. I didn't realize she was one of those muggle imitators... until after she invited me in."

"Invited you 'in'?" Sasha wasn't sure whether to laugh or be shocked.

"She owns one of those wiccan book shops, and lives in the apartment above it. She invited me in for tea, and we started talking. It was at this point it dawned on me she was definitely muggle. I think she knew I didn't have anywhere to go because she offered me a job with room and board. I kind of live there now. On holidays and stuff."

Sasha was having a hard time thinking of a reply. How was she supposed to respond to that?

"Do you.... like it there?" she ended up asking, dumbly. She was hoping to pass the question off as simply taking an interest. Unfortunately, it revealed in five simple words exactly how weird Sasha was feeling.

He laughed, nervously. That was a good sign, she supposed. Better than being offended. "Yeah. Sophia is certainly colourful. And she always gives me free stuff. She's a good person."

"Does she know that you're a...?"

"Wizard? No." He laughed again, "She's offered to initiate me into her coven, though."

"A coven? Like in those muggle movies?" Once the initial shook wore off, Sasha didn't have to feign interest. She was genuinely finding the subject fascinating. No one ever spoke about the muggles who pretended to be witches. It was a very taboo subject, and thus an extremely thrilling one.

"Exactly. I find it all very interesting, actually," he added, thoughtfully. "All their books," he said, picking up a book whose cover was made of green fabric. He flipped it open and handed it to Sasha.

There was a large black and white photo of a hag brewing a potion. She stared out of her page, unmoving. Sasha closed the book, though in her opinion, she couldn't have shut that creepy image away fast enough. She looked at Dane who was staring out the window, thoughtfully.

"What are you thinking about?" He looked back at her.

"I've never told anyone this stuff before. It's just weird that I'm telling it to you."

"Why _are_ you telling me?"

"Well," he sighed, "I'm not sure. I mean, you told me so much person stuff about your own family life, maybe that's why."

Judging by the way he was looking at her, that was _not_ the reason. She had seen the look before, in the way guys stared at Phil. It was longing.


	6. Chapter 6

"Sasha! Get up! We have class," Lena pulled a brush through her hair as she examined the effect in her jewelry case's mirror which sat on her bed side table.

"I don't want to." Sasha was curled into a ball on her bed. With her knees pulled up tight to her chin, trying to forget last night.

"No one ever _wants_ to."

"I'm sick."

"Bullshit."

"It's true. Why else would I miss the feast yesterday?" Sasha argued, knowing perfectly well that while it wasn't the true reason, it was a pretty good piece of evidence. Sasha was notorious for her love of dancing, especially at the Opening Feast when she was surrounded by friends after a generally dull summer.

"I dunno. That's why you're going to tell me in etiquette." Lena then flicked her wand, causing Sasha's blankets to fly off.

"Etiquette?"

"Yup. First period, just you and me," Lena said sniggering at Phil and Sandy, who rolled their eyes. Etiquette was the best way to start a morning because it required next to no thinking skills. It was common knowledge that it was the easiest course and the professor rarely noticed when her students talked.

With this in mind, Sasha got up. Etiquette would be an easy way to start the day, and she didn't really want to mope around anyway. On Dane's advice, she was pretty well done with feeling sorry for herself. There was a bit of irony in the fact that Dane, the one who successfully knocked some sense into her, was also the reason she was trying so hard not feel sorry for herself in this particular instance.

Sasha went in the bathroom and had a quick shower. She figured she wouldn't have time for breakfast, so she brushed her teeth, too. She muttered a quick spell to dry her hair, and got out for Phil to go in. She picked out a fresh uniform for the day and threw it on.

"Lena, where's my time table?"

"Mm, it's right here." She reached into the drawer of her bedside table. "Sorry, I just found it on the floor when I came in."

Sasha realized that she must have dropped it on the floor when her dad had left the day before.

"I was going to give it to you," she continued, "but you were already asleep."

"And naturally you wanted to read it for yourself." Lena replied with a sheepish grin. Sasha didn't really mind whether Lena snooped through her things or not. Lena was more than a friend. Sasha might describe her as a sister, but even that didn't quite cover it. Sometimes it felt like they were the same person, they were that close.

"Speaking of which," Sandy cut in, "what else do you have?"

"Lets see:

First period: Etiquette.

Second period: History of Magic.

Third: Study of Magical Creatures.

Lunch.

Spare period.

Fifth: Charms.

Sixth: Transfiguration.

Seventh: Physical Education and Health Studies."

"Wow. That's a weird combination. What is exactly you want to do with you're life?"

"I'm pretty set on being a gold digger," Sasha joked. She instantly regretted it once she remembered she may very well be engaged. Her stomach twisted.

Sandy snorted, shaking the piece of paper. "You'd have to be with an education like this."

"Hey!" Lena called indignantly from the bathroom Phillippa had just vacated. "I took the same courses. Except phys ed. I was smart. I took it first year." Lena craned her neck out of the bathroom to gloat at Sasha. She was of course referring to the fact that after first year, sex ed is added to the physical education courses.

"Yeah, well have fun in arithmancy instead." Sasha called to her. Lena glowered.

"I always thought you could be an actress, Sasha." Sasha turned to look at Sandy with a bemused expression.

"Like, you have these big, exotic, expressive grey eyes. And you were always the best in the school plays. Plus, once Phil becomes a famous director, she can cast you without even seeing an audition. It's perfect!"

"You did play a very good Katherina in _The Taming of the Shrew. _You delivered your lines so_ passionately_," Phillippa said dreamily.

"So, I take it you're still set on becoming a director?" Sasha asked, already knowing the answer. Phil was one of those lucky people who know what they want to be for their whole entire lives. Muggle born, like her parents before her, Phillippa had her heart set on being a director ever since she saw a stage version of _It's a Wonderful Life_ as a child.

"Oh, of course!" she said sincerely.

"How about you, Sandy?"

Sandy put two fingers to each of her temples and closed her eyes tightly in concentration. "Hmmm, interesting," she said in a musical voice. "I see myself as a great Seer! Greater and more famous than even Cassandra Trelawney!"

As Lena came back into the room, she smacked Sandy in the side of the head with a pillow. "Come off it."

"I'm serious!" claimed Sandy, with a face that looked far from serious. "Check out my time table," she said, handing over a crumpled piece of paper to Lena.

"Divination. Arithmancy. Astrology. Astronomy. Herbology. _Advanced_ divination? I've never even heard of that."

"It's because they only offer it at Brixbee's."

"Oh, so you're a cross dresser now, too?" Lena teased.

"Noooo," Sandy said patiently. "Once the Headmistress heard of my new career path, she was only too happy to ask as a personal favor to have me enrolled in that class."

"I never knew you were so interested in Seeing," Sasha commented.

"Neither did I. You can imagine my surprise when my mom told me."

"Well if you don't even like it, do you really want to do this?" Sasha's experience with her own father had driven her to deeply resent being controlled. Seeing a friend -especially someone as free spirited as Sandy- being forced into a career path she didn't choose for herself made Sasha's stomach do somersaults.

"This is really important to my parents! Both of my grandma's were Seers. Thats how my parents met. So, it's their favorite subject."

"Why don't they take it then? Go talk to Crumplebottom and ask to switch it." Lena chimed in

Sandy looked up from the timetable she was clutching to eye Lean. "You haven't met my parents. They would burn me at the stake!"

"Your mom isn't _here, _so why not just drop it?"

"Honestly, I don't really mind. The idea has a certain charm to it, I think. Definitely not your everyday 9 to 5 job." She shrugged, causing her black silky hair to bounce off her shoulders.

"Are you parents Seers?" Phil asked as she sat cross legged on her bed, applying very pink blush.

"You've known me for years! Do you honestly not know?"

"No... I don't think so."

"Oh, come on! How many times have I told you about running around in my parent's massive wine cellar?"

"I just figured you were exaggerating. That, or your parents drink a lot."

"We own a winery! We live on a vineyard, for Pete's sake!"

Sasha and Lena both rolled their eyes. "You ready to go, Sash?" Lena tossed a canvas bag which carried her books over her shoulder and took a step towards the door. Sasha jumped off her bed and hurried to Lena's side with her own books pressed to her chest.

"Bye ladies," Lena called as she walked out the door.

"Yeah. See you at lunch," Sasha called. Sandy and Phil muttered lazy farewells.

"So," Lena pressed, "going to tell me what happened to you last night?"

"You know I will. Once we get to class." Sasha wasn't avoiding the topic, she just didn't want to discuss the topic on the way to class.

Enchanted Rose was actually comprised of five educational buildings, several greenhouses, various student dorms, a room and board for staff, and many, many gardens. The buildings were all connected by cobbled pathways. The five educational buildings were built very close together. So close that, at one point, it was impossible to fully extend your arms as they would hit stone walls on either side of the grey path.

The main building was know also to be the largest. It was four stories high and shaped like a rectangle. The flowery courtyard which housed the romantic (infamously so) gazebo could be found at the north end of the main building. It also connected to the dinning hall, but barely because the stone, glassless windows of the dinning hall were so large, they could be considered one. The courtyard its self was barely contained by the narrow, single file archways which surrounded it. The etiquette classroom was not in the main building, however. It was slightly east of it.

The doors to the building were guarded on either side by pomegranate trees, which unlike many of the flowers and other plant life, did not require magical aid to survive the Greek environment. Like many of the other buildings, the floor was grey stone, as were the walls. The building was unique, however, as it had many frivolous decorations. The walls were covered with murals of Greek landscapes. Small alcoves in the walls, which acted as shelves, housed golden candelabras. Matching chandeliers hung from the arched ceiling. The wooden doors had carvings of different gods from Greek mythology. The particular door Lena and Sasha entered was adorned with the figure of Hestia.

The etiquette classroom , judging from what Sasha and Lena saw upon entering it, was unchanged from the previous year. The previous six years, actually. The 'desk' were still dining tables with chairs placed on only one side, facing the front of the class. Behind Professor Mullberry's elaborately carven wooden desk which resided at the front of the class next to an old fashioned chalkboard on wheels, was a adjoining greenhouse used for the flower arranging unit.

The pair did not pause to admire it, however, as Lena was determined to hear where her friend had been during the Opening Feast. Together, they took the two seats in the back right corner of the room. Taking advantage of the empty room, Lena relieved her growing curiosity.

"Where were you last night?"

"With Dane Osborn. He came to the room yesterday, then we went to his. We hung out there for most of the night."

Lena looked at Sasha sceptically. "Dane Osborn? Are you trying to take the mickey out of me?"

"I swear I'm not," Sasha tried to convince her, slightly offended Lena didn't believe Dane would want her.

"That still doesn't explain everything."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, we didn't see _you _for the rest of the afternoon, but we certainly saw you father."

"Oh, god, he didn't do something, did he?"

"Apart from almost trampling poor little Davey, no. He looked furious, though. So, are you going to tell me what happened or what?"

Sasha bit her lip a little. She didn't doubt Lena was a trustworthy friend, but she was deeply embarrassed by her... present situation. Picking up on Sasha's hesitation, Lena turned her blonde head to the front of the class and clenched her jaw.

She wouldn't even look at Sasha, who let out a long sigh. Sasha gently touched her arm and said, "Okay". She explain everything to Lena, who let out gasps at all the appropriate times, but never interrupted. She was a good audience.

"Don't you think that was a bit excessive?" Lena asked, tentatively. Clearly, she could not tell whether or not Sasha had returned to her rational self. When it came to dealings with her father, Sasha had been known to go into a snit for over a week. There was no telling what could set her off in such sensitive affairs. Luckily, Sasha had cooled off, and indeed, thanks to Dane, been faced with an even more embarrassing memory for her mental scrapbook. Just what she needed.

"Yes. I still think he's in the wrong, but I also realize I can be an over dramatic, pigheaded, bitch."

"Oh, I don't know about pigheaded," Lena smirked.

Sasha smiled. "Anyway, I wrote an apology almost immediately afterwards."

"It sounds like everything is pretty well sorted. So, what's got you so down?" Lena whispered. The classroom was quickly starting to fill, and neither of the two girls wanted to be overheard.

Sasha shook her head, her lush, ebony eyelashes just millimeters from grazing her pale cheeks. When she opened her eyes, she spoke. "My night with Dane didn't exactly turn out like I expected. Like I hoped."

Lena tilted her head slightly, a sympathetic expression on her face. "What happened?"

A slight blush rose to Sasha's cheeks as, once again, she was asked to confide information she would have rather no one knew. Since it was Lena, however, Sasha confessed.

"Things had been going really well. We were talking about some really personal things, but it didn't even feel awkward. It almost seemed the natural thing to do. We started talking about other things. Music mostly. He put on some of his favorite muggle CDs. But, when one of the CDs stopped, and he didn't put another one in, the mood changed so much."

Sasha turned her head from Lena and stared into space, remembering. "He just stared at me for a long while. I don't think my heart has ever beaten faster than it did then. He got off the bed kneeled in front of me on the floor, and..." Sasha could practically feel his hand move her hair out of her eyes; his soft breath on her face; his entrancing eyes connected with hers. She could also still feel the wrench in her stomach as he suddenly sprung up and grabbed at his own hair. She had also memorized the dialogue that had passed between them.

_"I'm sorry, Sasha, but we shouldn't do this."_

_"What? No! Why?"_

_"As far as we know, you're engaged. It's not right, and it's not fair."_

_"Well, it's not ideal, but we can get through this... if it's something you want. If _we_'re something you want."_

_"Of course I want there to be a 'we'. Sasha, I_'_ve been mad about you for years. Ever since you punched Georges Bontecou in the mouth for calling you a dyke when you wouldn't go out with him. I haven't so much as looked at another girl since that day. I just can't trust myself to not do something now that you're finally here."_

_"Dane, I've never even met this guy. I'm not going to marry him. Please, just forget him. Just focus on us."_

_"Sasha, for now, I think it would be best if I just took you back to your dorm."_

_"Don't worry about it," _she had tried to smile, "_I'll walk myself."_ In reality, she didn't want Dane to see her cry yet again.

"'And' what?" Lena asked, impatiently. Sasha snapped back to reality.

"And nothing," Sasha blinked. "He changed his mind and asked me to leave."

"What? That jerk! I've always thought he was a bit of a tease, but I can't believe he set you up like that."

"Lena, please don't. You weren't there. He's one of the best," Sasha paused to gather the right word to describe Dane, "... and most honorable men I know. Anyway, I'm sure things will work out," Sasha said with conviction.

"Quiet in the back please, ladies", called Professor Mullberry, who was at the front of the room. Apparently, class had already begun. "As I was saying, in past centuries it has been the ambition of proper ladies to become 'accomplished'. In the past, to be able to call a young lady 'accomplished', she was required to posses the graces of an accomplished dancer, the technique of a skilled painted, the delicate hand of a experienced embroiderer, and the musical proficiency of a true virtuoso. Of course I do not expect all of you to excel at these endeavors," the old witch said, eying the mousy Apora Duddle, who was notorious for her lack of coordination.

She went on, gliding through the rows of desks with her hands folded behind her back, "And of course, as you have learned in past years, a proper lady must be able to hold herself and walk with elegance, dine with refinement, speak with decorum, posses impeccable manners, and esteem the general qualities of a woman of elevated breeding. So shall it be the objective of this year's etiquette class to fashion each of you young ladies into persons of accomplishment. What this will mean is," she paused a moment, indicating that the following was very important, "you shall learn to sew, and more importantly, how to embroider. We shall dedicate two weeks of study to the art of watercolour painting. A professional music instructor has already been given the task of not only teaching you how to read music, but how to play the piano, as well. Finally, and most importantly, you shall learn to waltz. This is will be the most important chapter of the course because it has been predetermined that during you trip abroad this year, you will attend a masquerade ball."

A soft hiss spread through the classroom at this news. The primary reason girls took etiquette class was for the annual trip abroad. Last year the girls had been taken to Italy, and it was the general agreement that it had been the best trip yet. Everyone was eager to see what could possibly top it. A masquerade ball certainly seemed a worthy opponent.

Priscilla Hyde raised a delicate hand into the air. The professor smiled at her.

"Professor, I was wondering if you mightn't be able to tell us _where_ exactly we are going this year for our trip abroad?"

"A fair question, my dear," Professor Mulberry smiled. "I dare say you are all very keen to know..." she said dreamily, looking over the rim of her glasses to survey the class. Evidently, she would only answer the question if the class _looked_ like they wanted to know the answer. There was no problem there. Everyone sat alert in the chairs, eyes begging her to tell them.

"Headmistress Crumplebottom has arranged for this year's trip to take place in Austria."

Once again the class broke out in excited whispers. "Now, we have a busy year to get through, but it will have to wait. For the rest of the week, we will be focusing on review." Whispers were replaced with groans. "Now, who remembers the proper way to address a 'thank-you' letter?"


	7. Chapter 7

"I thought that class would never end," Sasha declared as she pulled her best friend into an embrace.

"I thought you liked Study of Magical Creatures?"

"We were reviewing werewolves."

"Ouch. Sensitive spot."

"I'd say," Sasha breathed, as they made their way to the dining hall from the gazebo. Long had the gazebo been their before lunch meeting spot. "At least Professor Rutts didn't assign homework. I wish I could say as much for Mullberry and Burnsbridge."

"Oh god. I say we just make Davey write those stupid thank-you letters."

"What stupid thank-you letters?" Sasha and Lena whipped around to see a smiling Davey. Sasha threw her arms around him.

"Davey!"

"Sasha! Where were you yesterday?"

She sighed, preparing to explain. Before she got the chance, however, Davey cut her off, "You don't have to tell me right now. Another time, maybe?"

Sasha smiled. Davey was always very considerate of other people's feelings. She gave him another hug before slipping her arm in his. His bleached blonde, teased, shoulder length hair smelt faintly of citrus. Lena began to lead the group to the dining hall, once again.

"Tell me all about your summer! How was Australia?" Sasha, stopped suddenly, noticing something for the first time.

Dane was scarcely ten feet away, leaning up against an olive tree, and looking directly at her. Once he caught her eye, he pushed off against the tree and walked directly for her. He never broke eye contact, but then again, neither did she. Out of the corner of her eye, Sasha could see Davey was mildly surprised, but also wearing a bemused expression.

"Sasha," his dark, melodic voice called, "I'd like to talk to you about last night. In private, if possible," he added, eying Davey and Lena.

"Yeah, sure. Could you guys..." Sasha begun, but once again, Sasha was cut off.

"Actually, I thought we could go somewhere. I had a particular place in mind."

"Oh, well, of course," Sasha said, uncertainly. "See you guys later," Sasha bid Davey and Lena farewell.

"Bye!" said the former, smiling. The latter just stood there, shaking her blonde head with her mouth slightly agape.

Dane led her away. Although there were gulls calling, waves roaring, and an army or girls giggling all around them, there was an unmistakable, uncomfortable silence between the two. Sasha didn't pay it much mind, however, as she was more focused on trying to keep up with Dane's long strides. Once they had gotten about a two minute's walk away from the main buildings, the only sound was the crunching of gravel under their feet. Slowly but surely, as they walked on, the sound of waves became louder and louder. They were getting close to the edge of the island again. Suddenly, Sasha realized where they were.

"My dorm?" Sasha asked, seeing the tall, cylindrical building through some carob trees.

"No. The greenhouses," he replied, distantly.

He was thinking hard about something. Sasha only wished she knew what. She would have like to ask him, but she just followed his lead instead. He went in the greenhouse closest to her dorm, throwing the door wide enough for her to catch it before it closed. She could barely keep up with him, but luckily Dane stopped only three paces from the entrance. Of course, that meant about six steps for her.

Sasha was happy to find that none of the plants in this greenhouse looked particularly threatening. None of them where trying to strangle her, at any rate. Actually, none of them seemed to be moving at all. Dane had stopped at a single plant with three, light purple, blossoms. The shape of the flower reminded her of stars. He caressed it gentle with his hand.

"It's called _Helleborus thibetanus", _Dane told her, keeping his eyes on the plant. "Most people just call it hellebore. It's poisonous, but," he continued after plucking on of the flowers, "it's known to be a purgative. It protects against bad things. Werewolves, if you like."

With the starry, purple flower in his hand, Dane walked towards Sasha, uncharacteristically slowly. Only then did Sasha noticed she was still near the door. Her heart started to beat faster. He came so close she could feel heat from his breath. How could he not hear her heart when it was beating so loudly? He lifted his left hand, and slid the flower into her black, glossy hair. She looked down for a moment and smiled, bashfully.

"Have you thought things over, then?" she asked, still staring down at her hands.

When she looked back up, she saw Dane lean closer. She tilted her head to the side, and closed the gap between their lips. He wrapped his arms around her small waist and started to explore her back with his hands. Sasha slid her arms over his shoulders. She touched her tongue to his lips, asking to enter, a request that was immediately granted. Dane pushed her back against the wall had placed his hands on the glass on either side of her.

"Is that good enough of an answer?" he asked, with his trade mark crooked smile.

She smiled back, before grabbing the back of his head and pushing it forward so she could kiss him again. Eventually he broke the deep kiss, causing Sasha to moan in disapproval. She promptly began to moan in pleasure, however, when he started to plant soft kisses all around her neck. When Dane began to suck on her earlobe, Sasha lifted her right leg and wrapped it around his waist, pulling him in closer. She grabbed the front of his robes, so he couldn't pull away. As a virgin, this was the most sensual make-out session Sasha had ever had.

And then the worst possible thing happened. The door flew open. Dane instantly released Sasha's ear lobe, at looked up bewildered. Standing furious in the doorway was her father, and to make the situation that much better, Sandy. Her father looked less than impressed. The small Asian component of the pair, however, had a huge smile smeared across her face.

"Damn, Sasha! You've got game, girl!"

"Lysandra, would you please escort my _daughter_ to the dining hall," her father spat, angrily. It wasn't a question, it was an order. "I would like to have a private word with this young man before I speak with her."

Sasha shifted uncomfortably. Dane moved away from her, finally. Evidently, he was ready to face the music. Seeing she was about to argue, Dane said quietly, "Go, Sasha. I'll be fine. I promise." She looked at him hurt, as though he had just ordered her away, but she just nodded. She sulked away to Sandy's side, past the her father, the human statue. Stealing one last glance at at Dane, a small act that made her father tense up instantly, Sasha walked out of the greenhouse. Her father slammed the door the moment she was out of the way. Sandy clearly didn't know what was going on because she was grinning like an idiot.

"Wow, over-protective or what?" Sandy began. Sasha wasn't really listening, though. Her feet moved of their own accord, taking her to the dining hall with out any effort. She was consumed with worry for Dane. She rarely saw her father show any emotion, so his display of anger was all the more frightening. Still, it was unlikely he would hurt Dane. Probably.

_'Well, Dane said he grew up with an abusive father, so he could hold his own, right?'_

For some reason, the thought of Dane attacking her father did little to comfort her. Every now and then, Sasha caught random fragments of what Sandy was saying: "... and then we saw your dad, which was weird because...", "...couldn't have looked more out of place...", "...was laughing, but he didn't seem to care..."

Still, the walk back to the dining hall felt as quiet to Sasha as the one away from it had been. It was like the world didn't exist. It was with a jolt that Sasha realized they had reached their destination.

"Hey, Sash. Did your dad find you okay?" Lena asked, walking up to her.

Sandy answered for her. "Oh man, you should have been there. I was just getting the key out so I could open the door, when we saw Sasha through the glass of the greenhouse. She was making out with Dane Osborn, of all people. I just knew her dad's mood couldn't last long. He-was-_pissed_."

"Oh no," breathed Lena. "Well, I hate to make matters worse, but I have some bad news."

Sasha wasn't sure she could take much more. "What now?" she asked, quietly.

"_He_ is here."

"Who?"

"Oh, I think you know," Lena replied, giving Sasha a significant look. Sasha's heart sunk. "He's in the dining hall right now. Maybe you can sneak away before your father gets here."

Sasha didn't say anything. She just walked past, toward the dining hall.

"Sash? Where are you going? Get back here!" Lena called in a loud whispered.

Instead, she walked up to one of the many large windows of the dinning hall. The exterior of the stone wall, for the most part, was covered in pink roses. Some of the plants were beginning to crawl in through the window. She peeked through the thick foliage, using it to conceal herself.

It was obvious who the werewolf was. Apart from being the only man in the room, his robes were old, grey, and tattered. Just what she expected from a werewolf. She knew she should leave, but curiosity got the better of her, and so she stayed.

The werewolf looked uncomfortable, and maybe a little nervous. His face was lined with age, and his light brown hair was flecked with grey. It didn't look as though he had shaved in a couple of days. He was fairly tall and his hands were large. He didn't particularly look like a monster, just a tired man. A very poor, tired man.

Suddenly, he looked directly at Sasha.

She didn't like the way he was staring at her. His mouth opened slightly when he saw her in surprise. He also tensed up, like a dog when it notices a squirrel. And she was the squirrel. Sasha, still hiding behind the pink roses, felt herself blush a little. Thankfully, Lena grabbed her arm and brought her back down to earth.

"What are you doing? Aren't you going to get out of here before he sees you?"

She glanced back at the window. "Where did he go?" Sure enough, the shabby man was gone.

"I didn't see", said Lena, agitated. Every part of her looked like she just wanted to leave.

"Headed straight for us," Davey said, appearing out of no where. If there hadn't been a 'popping' sound absent, Sasha would have sworn he had just apparated.

"Jesus," Lena swore, quietly.

The werewolf walked over calmly, with his hands in his tweed suit jacket pockets. He looked a lot more relaxed now that he was out in the open. Perhaps it was because he wasn't so crowded by teenage girls. At any rate, he approached the trio with a small smile.

"Excuse me," he said in a kind voice she hadn't expected from a werewolf, "are any of you familiar with Narkissa Winchcombe?" He directed the question to all of them, but kept his eyes fixed on Sasha.

Lena immediately said no, but Davey said yes at the same time. The werewolf glanced at them, not unkindly, before looking back at Sasha.

"What they mean to say is," began Sasha, mentally hitting herself for doing this, "I don't go by Narkissa. Only my parents still call me that. I prefer Sasha."

"I see," a smile spread across his face. There was a kind twinkle in his golden-brown eyes. "And you know who I am?"

"I think I could give a good guess." The werewolf's smile widened.

"All the same, perhaps a proper introduction would be appropriate." He lifted his large, rough hands out of his pocket and offered one to Sasha.

"Remus Lupin," he said tenderly.

After a moment's hesitation, Sasha took his hand. "Sasha Winchcombe."

Her small, delicate hand looked like a child's in his. All the same, now that he was in front of her, Sasha couldn't believe she hated this man. She was still afraid of him, to be sure, by he seemed so gentle. She couldn't picture him hurting a soul.

"Sash? Class?" Lena broke the spell. Only then did Sasha realize she was still holding the werewolf's - no, Mr. Lupin's - hand. Quickly, she pulled it back.

"Right! Um, I have to go."

Mr. Lupin smiled in understanding, but he was clearly disappointed. "Of course."

"I guess I'll see you later," Sasha called over her shoulder as Lena led her away by the hand.

"Bye!" Sasha heard Davey call to Mr. Lupin. She didn't see it, but she was certain he had waved to the werewolf.

*****

"That was close!" Lena exclaimed as she and Sasha threw themselves down into their seats.

They were very close to being late for charms class, and so all the back seats were taken. They had to satisfy themselves with sitting in the front row in the right hand corner, farthest away from the professor's desk. The authoritarian in question being none other than Professor Humbeline, the jolly charms teacher.

"Yeah. Very," Sasha agreed distantly.

"Quiet, girls, please!" called Professor Humbeline, her plump cheeks very rosy from the heat.

"Sorry Hums!" called Lena. Professor Humbeline was a favorite of Sasha and Lena, and was probably the only teacher they could get away with calling a nick name.

"Nothing to be sorry for," she waved Lena's apology away. "Just wait to talk after I'm done the lesson. Right, well, welcome back seventh years! Now, I'm sure you're all sick of this by now, but for the next couple of days we will be reviewing what we learned last year."

A simultaneous groan spread across the classroom.

"Hums, please can we do something fun?" Lena begged.

Professor Humbeline considered for a moment before nodding her curly black head and whispering to the class, "Alright, but only because it's such a nice day out. If anyone asks, tell them you're practicing charming the clouds into familiar shapes. Bunnies or something. Go on!" she said, smiling.

"Oh my god, Hums, you're the best!" Lena said, throwing her arms around the professor's neck, though it was an awkward hug because of how wide she was.

"Think of it as a welcome back present," she smiled. Then, seriously, she wagged her finger at Lena and said, "We _will_ be doing review tomorrow, though!"

"Yeah, yeah. Tomorrow."

"Bye Hums!" Sasha called as she followed Lena out the door. "See you tomorrow!"

Then, once they had left the classroom, she said to Lena, "I freakin' love that woman."

"Me too, me too. Now, what do you want to do? Hang out in the gazebo?"

"Naw. Let's go swimming!"

"We have transfiguration in like, 40 minutes."

"Yeah, that's 40 minutes of swim time and you're wasting it. Let's go!"

It took the girls about 5 minutes to race back to their room and another 5 to find their swimsuits and change. Lena wore a cute white, triangle bikini with a strawberry pattern all over it. Sasha wore a classic 50's style one piece with small white polka dots dotted over the vibrant red fabric. As Lena rummaged in her trunk for her sunglasses, Sasha carefully removed the purple flower in her hair. Carefully, she pressed it in her charms book. Once Lena had grabbed her glasses and Sasha had placed her charms book in the drawer of her bedside table, they grabbed their towels and run back down the stairs. They then ran down a steep path which led to the beach that surrounded the island almost continuously. Before they knew it, Lena and Sasha were splashing around in the glorious sea.

"I can't believe it's been over three months since we last did this!" laughed Lena, as she threw herself back into the cool water.

"Me neither. Remember how we used to go for a swim practically every day after class let out?"

Lena laughed. "God, that must have been back in second year!"

"Yeah, I guess it was, 'cause that's how we met Sandy."

"And it started to rain, but she convinced us to stay out with her anyway. Everyone else went running away, screaming. Not her, though. She though it was great."

Sasha's initial joy of being in the water subsided a little. "Lena?" she asked, tentatively.

"Yes?" replied Lena, who was floating on her back.

"Do you think we'll still be friends after we graduate?"

"Of course we will," she laughed.

"No matter what?"

Lena relaxed her pose and started treading water so she could face her best friend. "No-matter-what. Well, I can't speak for the others, but I'm sure they would agree. What's got you so worried?"

"Well, what if I do have to marry that werewolf? Would you still want to be my friend then...?"

Lena grabbed Sasha's head and pulled it so that their foreheads touched. Staring Sasha straight in the eye, she said, "BFFs. Best Friends Forever. No werewolf is going to change that, got it?" She released Sasha's head, and said in an uncharacteristically dry tone, "Speaking of which..."

Sasha followed Lena's gaze past her shoulder and on to the shore. There stood her father, with the werewolf next to him. Her father's arms were crossed over top of his chest. He didn't look angry now, just annoyed.

"I guess it's best if we just go. No point antagonizing him further."

"No. I'd better go alone. You don't have to be involved in this mess."

"Are you sure you wouldn't like a little moral support?"

In truth, Sasha would have loved a lot of moral support. Instead she just shook her head. "I'll be fine. No worries."

"Okay, but if you need me, I'll be right here. Just call."

"Will do," she called as she began a lazy front crawl back to shore. Once she got there and had waded her way fully onto the sandy beach, she was painfully aware of Mr. Lupin's eyes. He wasnt staring at her boobs or anything, in fact her was doing a very good job at keeping his gaze above her neck like a gentlemen would. Regardless, Sasha felt very self conscious in front of the stranger. Well, almost stranger.

"Shouldn't you be in class?" her father said, in a haughty tone.

"We're practicing a cloud charm... for.... well, for charms."

"Yes, I can see you're very dedicated to that task," her father said coolly, gesturing his head to the water. "At any rate, I've just finished telling Lupin all about your earlier behaviour on our way over. He felt very strongly that you and he should talk, so naturally I offered to wait with him. You can imagine our surprise to find you and your little friend swimming- especially when you told Lupin you had class."

"I do! I did, anyway. My spare is fourth period, you can check my timetable if you don't believe me."

"I don't know what to believe when it comes to you. You show some maturity for the first time in your life, so I come to introduce you to your _fiancé,_" he stressed the word dramatically, "and the next thing I know, I catch you whoring yourself out to some clinically depressed _teenager_.

"Brian, I would greatly appreciate if you didn't call your daughter a whor-", Lupin began, but Sasha cut him off. She knew that yelling would only make the situation worse, but she was too angry to care.

"Yes, _dad_, I was with a teenager! 'Cause guess what? I _AM _a teenager! And thanks so much for your interest in my love life, but I would a thousand times rather be whore to that 'clinically depressed teenager' than wife to this- this _cradle robbing_ _werewolf_!"

Her father was beat red. Lupin was chalk white. "I didn't raise you to be so selfish!"

"You didn't raise me at all! And as for being selfish, once again, I'm a teenager. It's part of the territory."

"You are going to marry Remus John Lupin whether you like it or not. Get used to it!" On that note, her father stormed away, and Sasha was left with the werewolf.

He was still very pale. His hands were once again in his pockets and he was staring at his feet. He looked ill, embarrassed, ashamed, and his eyes looked so mournful. Sasha wanted to cry, too, but for once not for herself. Sasha wished all of her words back, but then she realized it wasn't going to happen just because she wished it so.

"Lupin-"

"I understand completely. I could never force you to marry someone like-," he paused for a moment and lifted his pitiable face and shook his head. Evidently he didn't want to finish his sentence, but rather he skipped right to the end of his speech. "I won't bother you again."

Sasha's heart melted with pity. Almost. Still, was it his fault he was a werewolf?

"Actually, I was going to apologize. That was so out of line and I am very sorry for being so rude to you." The way his face lit up was priceless. Sasha couldn't believe she was saying this, but she asked him, "Look, um, do you want to go for a walk with me?"

To her surprise, Lupin nodded. She had expected him to put up some sort of struggle, considering the tantrum she had just thrown about him. She picked up her towel and waved goodbye to Lena, who waved back. She hurried to Lupin's side and together they started walking along the shore.


	8. Chapter 8

"Narkissa," Lupin began after a short silence, "I appreciate the uncomfortable situation you are in. I would like to point out one small fact, however, that Brian seems to have overlooked. Hopefully it will be of some comfort to you"

"And what would that be?" asked Sasha, genuinely curious.

"We're not actually engaged. I haven't agreed to marry you at all, let alone propose. Incidentally, it would appear you are not very keen on the idea, anyway."

"Then why have you come?" For some reason, Sasha didn't like that 'one small fact'. It made Sasha feel as if he were rejecting her.

Lupin sighed. "Brian can tend to get a little ahead of himself. What I did agree to was coming to meet you, not as your fiancé, but to see if I ever could be your fiancé. I did not have great expectations, but your father seemed so desperate. I would like you to know I meant no harm by coming here. I just wanted to help."

That was a low blow. Sasha knew perfectly well she was selfish, and was content with that. Standing next to someone so selfless, however, made Sasha squirm. She didn't know this man, neither liked nor disliked him, but she admired his courage in coming here today for a good (though undoubtedly lost) cause. The least she could do was _try _to think of someone else.

"That Greyback man..."

"What about him?" asked Lupin patiently.

"Would he really attack those children? Go after my family?"

Lupin thought for a moment before he answered. "There is nothing to say the Ministry wouldn't stop him before that happens."

"But would he try?"

He paused again before answering, "He is not one to go back on his word. I think that's the most anyone can say of him. As for your family, there is no guarantee that he would even attempt to mount an attack on them. He has gone after families before, but not often. Keep in mind he made no promise to harm your parents."

_'No,'_ thought Sasha, _'only me and about a dozen small children.'_

"How much of a chance does the Ministry have of catching him before he attacks anyone?"

This time, Lupin didn't answer, which said more to Sasha than words ever could have. She wished that what she was about to say didn't need words, either. She felt awkward even thinking about it and saying it out loud would be embarrassing, at the very least. Unfortunately, Lupin probably couldn't even begin to guess what she was thinking.

"I guess it couldn't hurt to get to know you better," Sasha said, pulling the towel tight around her shoulders and keeping her eyes fix on the white sand. Thinking back to the fact that he hadn't agreed to marry her either, she added, "If you're interested at all."

Lupin stopped walking. When Sasha looked back at him their eyes met. For some reason, she lost her breath. As they stared at each other, Sasha was very much aware of the radiant sun, the wind that tossed her wavy black hair, and the roar of the waves. She was even more aware of the amber eyes that pierced her. After holding the gaze for a few seconds, Lupin smiled and said, "No, it couldn't hurt."

*****

"You're seeing him again?" asked Sandy, dumbstruck. Scarcely eight hours ago Sasha had left Lupin at the beach for class. Now, as she and her friends prepared to go to sleep, she recounted her long story. It was nearing midnight as the girls sat crossed legged on their beds, ready to slip under the covers. With Sasha's narrative complete, it was time for all the questions.

"For lack of a better word; yes."

"Why?" asked Phillippa, mortified. She was easily the 'nicest' of the group, but also the most conservative. It was little wonder why werewolves didn't sit well with her.

Sasha shook her head, not knowing the answer herself. "I felt bad for him. Did I make a mistake?"

"Yes!" yelled Sandy, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. It wasn't obvious to Sasha.

"Werewolves are _dangerous,_" reasoned Phil gently. "There is a reason they're the villains in all those fairy tales we're told as children. Beedle the Bard never married a princess off to a werewolf."

"Guys, Sasha's naive, not stupid," Lena, said, coming to the defense. "She's not going to marry the guy or anything."

"Oh, god, can you imagine the kids?"

"Ew! Sandy, you perv!" Sasha cried at her giggling friend.

"Sandy, now isn't the time to joke about things like that," said Phil, reasonably.

"Guys, I don't know what to do," said Sasha, hopelessly. "I feel so lost."

"Aw, sweetie, you'll be okay," cooed Lena.

"Yeah. Ditch the dog and you'll be fine. Then you and Dane can officially become an item. I can't even tell you how good you two looked together. It's too bad your dad and I kind of ruined the moment."

"Kind of?"

"Okay, we screwed you. Still, the advice remains the same: tell the werewolf to fuck off."

"No! Sasha, _don't_ make him angry, whatever you do!" Phil pleaded. "The last thing you need is _another_ werewolf after you. Greyback is bad enough."

"Phil, he isn't going to attack me if I say no."

"Of course he will. He's a werewolf, that's what they do. It's in their nature."

"He seemed nice," said Sasha quietly, playing with the cord of her pajama bottoms. Her roommates, even Lena, were struck dumb. Sandy, as usual, was the first to break the silence.

"Hun... you realize he's a monster? You can't be together. It's not even an option."

"I didn't say I was going to marry him!" Sasha said, defensively.

"You didn't have to. We're your best friends. We know you, Sasha."

"I'm sorry sweetie," said Phil, hesitantly, "I agree with Sandy."

"I _didn't _say I wanted to marry him," Sasha repeated. "I just said I thought he was nice, which he is. He didn't seem like a monster."

Sandy and Phil shared a significant look.

Lena, on the other hand hopped off her bed and bounced on to Sasha's. Throwing her arms around the other, she said, "If he's the one you want, I support your decision."

Sasha shook her head. "I don't want him! Guys, stop, seriously. I came to you for help, I don't need this. Things aren't as simple as 'marry a werewolf or not'. There are other factors. What about those kids? And I'm sorry, but I don't want to be some chew toy for Greyback."

"You're sure you don't have feelings for him?" Sandy asked slowly.

"Positive. I've barely met the guy," Sasha added, as if that settled the matter.

Clearly unconvinced, Sandy concluded, "Okay then. If we all work together, we can think of something. Starting tomorrow."

And with that, the four girls crawled into their awaiting beds. Lena was the last to get into her bed since she had to get off of Sasha's first. When she was safely tucked under her covers, she whispered "_Nox,_" plunging the room into darkness as her wand went out.


	9. Chapter 9

Several weeks passed before Sasha saw Lupin again. Unfortunately, neither she nor her friends had come up with a plan to save Sasha from her fate. Within that time, Sasha and Dane had become very close. Although he never swam, Dane often accompanied Sasha and her friends to the beach. He also joined them for lunch on most days. The times Sasha enjoyed most, however, were when she and Dane could be alone. On a particular Friday in early October, Sasha found herself longing for Dane's comforting presence.

"Where did he go exactly?" Lena whispered through the side of her mouth.

"Diagon Ally," Sasha replied, equally quiet.

They stood in a long line up of girls in the dance room. The dance teacher, Mrs. Graham, paced in front of the line like a drill Sargent examining troops, or in this case, the potential actresses. Although the temperature was easily 30°C in sunny Greece, autumn was officially underway, and with it the beginning of auditions. A great deal of excitement was in the air as it was released several days before that this year's school play would be _Much Ado About Nothing_, as usual, written by William Shakespeare.

"Why?"

"He broke his wand last night. He wanted to get one before class started on Monday, so he signed himself out."

"Save the socialization for after auditions, ladies," said the petite, American dance teacher sternly. Her blonde hair was pulled back tightly into a small bun at the top of her slender neck. Her sharp eyes, which did not really need the emphasis from the black eyeliner she was wearing, turned their harsh gaze on Sasha. She continued.

"As you know, the script selected for this year's annual play is _Much Ado About Nothing_. For those of you who read the script, you will know it does not require as many characters as last year's play did. All the same, we will have plenty of places open for extras, so don't worry if you don't land a main role. The auditions for the male characters will be held tomorrow, so you wont find out the results until Monday, at least. Remain in the order you are now and proceed one by one into the theatre, entering only when the previous person has left. I wish you all luck and will see you soon."

She then gracefully slid out of the dance room and into the theatre, which were connected back to back. Lena leaned back on the ballet barre as blew a piece of hair out of her face.

"Broke his wand last night, did he?" she asked suspiciously.

"Yeah."

"Weren't you two hanging out last night?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes."

"I wonder what physical activity you two were engaging in that could have accidentally broken his wand."

"I told you, Lena," replied Sasha, who had been fully expecting this, "he was helping practice my monologue."

"Then how'd he break his wand?"

"He sat on a rock funny. His wand was in his back pocket, and it snapped in half."

"Lucky him. In Diagon Ally while I'm stuck here. No fair."

"If you don't appreciate the theatre," came a cold voice, "you shouldn't have come. It detracts from the experience of everyone else here, who are _serious_ about drama."

"Isn't it about time you pulled out that wand that's stuck up your ass, Callista?" remarked Sasha, with equal frigidness.

Callista Prewett was a long time enemy of Sasha. Rival actresses, Sasha had not failed to get the lead role yet, a record Callista resented with a fiery passion.

"For someone who claims to have such a great love of acting, you certainly don't show it."

"I don't have to claim anything, Callista. I prove it every year on the stage, in case you've forgotten. Lead role, six years running."

"Ah, but I think your perfect record is at an end. You've been so distracted lately with your new little boy toy and all."

"Still bitter about Dane rejecting you, I see."

She gave a mirthless laugh. "Dane Osborn? That little emo freak? I'll admit I did think he was cute, in a pathetic sort of way, in my younger years. Now that I see the kind of people he associates with, I've got to say I'm glad things didn't work out between us."

"Callista, you have always been brass." The girl in question raised an eyebrow, taken aback. Sasha continued, "You sort of look like gold, but you will never be the real thing. And as soon as it rains, you are going to rust."

Slowly, Callista turned her back on Sasha and joined in on some other conversation with Priscilla Hyde. Lena placed herself at Sasha's side.

"Brass? What was that all about?"

Sasha shrugged. "I'm not sure. It sounded good, though, right?"

"Yeah, if you're a fan of bad poetry."

"'Like to see you come up with something better on the spot."

"Oh god," Lena rolled her eyes as some of the girls waiting to audition moved to the centre of the room to show off their ballet moves.

"Why do guys go after girls like that?" Lena asked, softly. After Sasha had begun to get closer to Dane, Phil with Darran, and Sandy with Miles, Lena had become noticeably melancholy.

"Because they're like bicycles. Easy to ride. Anyway, you'll end up with a great guy. You'll see."

Lena was quiet for a moment. Then she suddenly said, "Let's go to Diagon Alley."

"What?" Sasha laughed.

"I want to go shopping. Dane's in Diagon Alley. I think we should go to Diagon Alley, too."

"I don't know, Lena."

"Come on! I've just been really down lately, seeing all of you with your boyfriends. This would cheer me up," she pleaded.

"I don't have a boyfriend either."

Lena shoot her a scathing look. "You and Dane can pretend all you like, but everyone else knows better."

"Oh give me a break. He hasn't come within a foot of me since the greenhouse."

"Really?"

"Really."

"I thought you two must have done _something_ by now."

"Nope. Sometimes I feel like I must have some anti-Dane repellent spell on me."

"That's rich. He can't get enough of you, and I don't think anyone's ever seen him so happy."

"Well, I think if my dad hadn't scared the shit out of him we _would_ be a real couple."

Lena smiled mysteriously. "Maybe the two of us need to turn up the sex appeal."

"Explain."

"We can take the floo network to The Leaky Cauldron, and then slip out to muggle London."

"Why would we want to do that?"

"One word: lingerie."

Sasha stiffened. "We don't have any muggle money."

"I have my debit card in my wallet. You can pay me back some other time."

Sasha smiled. "Okay. Right after your audition, run back to the room and grab your wallet. I'll meet you outside of the office."

*****

Sasha tapped her foot impatiently as she checked the sun dial in the garden in front of the main office. It was nearly twelve. Lena had gone in for her audition first, followed directly by Sasha who recited her monologue hurriedly. It was safe to say that her 'winning' streak was at an end. As soon as she left the theatre she broke out into a run, even ignoring Callista's smug expression. Just as Sasha was going to go look for her, Lena came running into the garden. In her arms she carried a bundle of fabric.

"I ran as fast as I could," she huffed, "but as I was about to leave I figured we'd want some muggle clothes. I figured we could change in The Leaky Cauldron."

"Good thinking." Sasha agreed.

Lena smiled as she threw Sasha a denim skirt and a white ruffled blouse with short sleeves. She herself kept a light blue cotton dress.

"Ready?" she asked.

"As I'll ever be," replied Sasha. Together they pulled open the glass doors which opened to the main office. Once a witch came of age they were allowed to sign out and use the Headmistress' fireplace to go somewhere. Sometimes to visit family, but more often than not, to go shopping. Once they had signed their names on the 'sign out' parchment, along with the time, they climbed the stairs at the far end of the room which took them up to the Headmistress' office. There was no need to knock, however. The fireplace with the floo connection was in the lobby, which the spiral staircase opened up to.

Unlike much of the school, this room had soft pink carpet which squished in a satisfactory way under Sasha's feet. There were expensive green drapes drawn to the sides of the large windows, which, like the doors downstairs, had panes of glass which the school lacked elsewhere. In the middle of the room was a collection of couches, love seats, and upholstered chairs which matched the shade of green in the curtains. And at the far end of the room was a large white fireplace. It was about seven feet high and four feet wide. Its function was evident, especially since a glass bowl filled with floo powder sat next to it.

Sasha and Lena went up to it and each grabbed a handful of the silver dust. Lena went first and clearly said "Diagon Alley." Sasha followed her, and remember to tuck her elbows in, repeated the same words. Several fireplaces zoom past, but Sasha shortly found herself staring straight at Lena, who was grinning.

"Come on!" insisted Lena, who took a slightly dizzy Sasha by the wrist and led her to the bathroom of The Leaky Cauldron.

The Leaky Cauldron certainly deserved its name. It looked run down and even more depressing than Sasha remembered it. The bathroom was particularly nasty with random splotched of grey moisture on the walls and a scummy green filth caked in the creases of the sink. Sasha was grateful she didn't have to use the toilets. She threw off her pinafore and pulled on the clothes Lena had grabbed from her trunk. Lena, whose dress zipped up rather than relied on multiple buttons as Sasha's blouse did, muttered a shrinking spell which made their school uniforms look like doll's clothes.

"Here," Lena said, handing Sasha the pinafores, "I don't have pockets. You keep them." They checked their hair in the mirror before leaving the bathroom, hopefully never to return to the dingy place. The said a hello to Tom, the bar man, before the slipped through the slender door which led to the muggle part of London.

"God, I forgot how much the weather sucks in England," sighed Sasha as she looked up at the black skies. She had to wrestle with her hair to keep the wind from blowing it in her eyes. "Well, now where do we go?"

"Left," Lena said as she started walking. "There should be a La Senza store somewhere around here. My mom took me this summer."

"Is it far? I really don't want to get caught in the rain."

"No. Oh, look, it's right there!" squealed Lena, excitedly.

Sure enough, sticking out like a sore thumb, were the silver 'La SENZA' letters. Illuminated by electric muggle lights, the sign appeared all the more clear for the stormy day. Lena and Sasha lightly jogged across the street to the store. They laughed a little from excitement as they threw the door open. Inside was as warm and inviting as outside was dreary. It was as colourful as the candy shops in Diagon Alley itself. Vibrant colours shot out from every direction. Sasha wanted to touch every one of the unique fabrics, but contained herself.

The muggle girl at the desk kindly asked, "Do you need any help?"

Lena began to say they were fine, but Sasha spoke over she. "Yes, actually. Where is your lingerie?"

The muggle smiled. "It's right at the back. Here, I'll show you." Lena and Sasha followed her.

"Special guys?" asked the clerk.

"Hopefully," Sasha replied.

"I see." They had reached the back and the muggle woman pulled a hanger off the rack. "You may want to try this, then." She held up a leopard print bustier with purple lace to Sasha, who examined herself in a near by mirror.

"Oh, Sash, it perfect!" exclaimed Lena. "You have to try it on. Do you have any suggestions for me?" she asked, turning back to the sales clerk.

"Well, let's see. Do you want to be girly, or sophisticated?"

"Girly, definitely. I just want something fun."

"Well, I suggest sticking with light pinks, blues, and, purples. I think they would look really cute with your blonde hair."

Lena nodded seriously, taking in every word of advice the sales clerk told her. Sasha, on the other hand went off to look around. She also grabbed a red and black trim babydoll, which reminded her vaguely of her bathing suit. Moving on to more sensible night wear, she also picked up some blue shorts and a matching T-shirt which said 'Let me Sleep on It' in swirly white letters. She liked the shorts because they had a cute bow. Just as she was admiring them, Lena sneaked up from behind and grabbed she shoulders, causing Sasha to nearly drop her items.

"Lena, you jerk!" she laughed, embarrassed.

Lena was laughing maniacally. "Come on! Don't even bother with those! We're here for _sexy_ things, not pajamas you'd wear at your dad's house."

"Well, what do you want to look at?"

"Bras!" Lena exclaimed.

Well over an hour later the girls left the store, waving good bye to Kate, the sales clerk who they had gotten very close to during their lingerie splurge. By the end of it, they had bought a variety of things including garter belts, g-strings, cute Brazilian panties, three bustiers each, and every colour of push up bra they could find. The girls had decided to look for Dane after shopping, and under Kate's advice, Sasha wore her favorite bra which had a zebra print out of the store. Kate insisted that wearing pretty underwear made you _feel _sexy, which was key to getting any guy. Sasha was certainly beginning to think she was right. She. Felt. Good.

It was raining now, but even that couldn't dampen the girl's spirits. They ran laughing to The Leaky Cauldron, which the La Senza bags made no easier. As soon as they got inside, Lena began laughing even harder.

"What?" asked Sasha, restricting herself to giggles only.

"Your shirt- is white- got wet from the rain. You can see your-" Lena couldn't finish the sentence and fell into further laughter, but Sasha got the general gist. She looked down and, sure enough, could see the zebra print of her bra quite clearly. She was about to laugh herself, but sobered up instantly when she heard a familiar voice, and it wasn't Dane's.

"Narkissa?"

Sasha's head jerked instantly to the right, where the voice had come from. In the corner of the pub sat Lupin, quite drenched himself with a steaming cup of tea in front of him. She blushed furiously when he looked down at her shirt. By now even Lena was quiet as she eyed Lupin, warily.

"Hey, eye's up, you!" she barked at him. Sasha was grateful, but she could feel her cheeks burn even more red.

Lupin must have realized he was staring because he became quite red himself.

"Please, sit down," he said, flustered.

After glancing at each other briefly, the girls tried to navigate their way to his booth, inadvertently bashing their bags into each table and chair they passed. In hind sight, there really was no good reason to buy as much stuff as they did. Once they sat down, surrendering their bags to the cold floor, Lupin smiled.

Gesturing his head at Sasha's shirt he asked, "If I may?" When Sasha failed to give a response, he lifted is wand and said, _"Estusiccus!" _A warm blast of white air shot out of Lupin's wand, drying Sasha (specifically her shirt) almost instantly. He passed his wand over her face, as well, which dried her soaked hair. He repeated the process on Lena.

"Better?" he asked. Both girls nodded slowly. There was a brief, but very awkward silence. Eventually Lupin broke it.

"Shopping?" he asked.

"Yup," answered Lena, awkwardly. Lupin looked down at the bags.

"La Senza? I don't think I've heard of it."

"Understandable. It sells intimate apparel."

Lupin looked genuinely curious. "Intimate apparel?"

"Bras," said Sasha bluntly.

Lupin raised his eyebrows. "I see," he said in a tone slightly higher than usual.

"And you? Shopping?" asked Sasha, trying to avoid lapsing into another awkward silence. The only thing worse than have to talk to him was not talking to him.

"Um, yes. I just bought a book, actually."

"What book?" asked Lena, blankly.

"Well, I doubt you've heard of it," he said nervously as he fiddled with his tea cup.

"Oh, come on! We told you we bought bras, and you even got to see Sasha's. Just tell us what book you bought."

"It isn't important."

"If it isn't important, just tell us. Please." Sasha tilted her head to the side, sweetly, and smiled.

The simple gesture had always been able to melt the heart of her tough Russia grandfather, and she hoped it would work on Lupin, too. It did, which Sasha felt a little guilty about. The result was instantaneous. His eyebrows drew together as she slowly reached to his side and lifted a bag from Flourish and Blots. He slid it on the table over to Sasha.

Taking the bag, Sasha pulled the book out and got a slight jolt. Lena leaned over to take a better look. Once she properly saw the title of the book she let out a high pitch "Oh."

On the front cover it said '_Hairy Snout, Human Heart_'. When Sasha looked back at Lupin she found him staring at the ceiling in embarrassment. That confirmed her suspicions that the book was indeed about werewolves. She slipped it back into the bag and placed it in front of Lupin.

"Um, Lena, do you want to go find Dane?" asked Sasha, wanting a bit of privacy with Lupin.

Lena caught on quickly. "Sureee, why not? I'll be back soon, though," she said winking, as if to say "_I've got your back if you need it._" Once she had walked about half way across the empty tavern, Sasha felt comfortable enough to talk about more private matters with Lupin.

"So, I haven't really seen you," said Sasha quietly.

"Well, I didn't really want to bother you."

Sasha was quiet for a moment before she said, "It would probably be best if you did, though. I kept on expecting you to come, but you never did."

He nodded, but didn't say anything. Sasha went on.

"I spent the first couple of weeks thinking about why you wouldn't come."

"And what did you come up with?" asked Lupin, lightly. It seemed he was over his embarrassment with the book.

"To be perfectly honest, at first I was a little offended. All I could think was "_I'm getting stood up by a _werewolf".

Lupin just stared at her and nodded. She continued.

"Then I thought I probably had it the wrong way around." Lupin lifted his eyebrows in curiosity. "Well, I realized you probably didn't want to be with some 17 year old girl. The last time we met, you gave me the option to walk away right then and there. I'd like to give you the same option now."

Lupin considered her for a moment, before shaking his head. "I told you the truth when I said I didn't want to bother you. Your dad told me all about your boyfriend, and I wasn't really looking forward to interfering with that. How is he with all of this?"

"Dane? He's been really good about it. He's not really my boyfriend, though. I think he doesn't want me to cheat on you, in case we are engaged."

Again, Lupin nodded his head. He sipped the last dregs of his tea before he spoke. When he did, he said, "If we were engaged, I wouldn't expect you to be faithful."

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. You're young and it's not fair that you have to marry me. In any case, I'm sure we could get divorced in a year or two, once the whole thing blows over. This is assuming, of course, that you would marry me in the first place."

"So," said Sasha slowly, trying to think things over in her head, "if we got engaged, or even married, you would be okay with me seeing someone else? And we could get a divorce later?"

"I think that sounds about right. I can see no reason why we would need to act like a real married couple. Essentially, the whole deal is more of a legal matter than anything else. For appearances sake I would have to visit you relatively often, but once we got married I would expect no more of you than to live in the same house with me."

For the first time in over a month Sasha felt as though a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. "Well, that sounds kind of perfect. I mean, not _perfect_ obviously since we have to get married at all, but it's a better ultimatum than I could have hoped for."

"Are we decided then?" asked Lupin.

Sasha's lips curved into a radiant smile. "Yes, Mr. Lupin, I think we are. Thank you," she added, placing her hand over his on the table. He jumped a little at the action. "I'm so glad I ran into you."

Lupin returned the smile just as the back door of the pub opened, sending in a gust of chilly air. Soaked once again, Lena walked in, followed by an even wetter Dane. His black hair was plastered to his head

and he looked even more washed out than usual. With a jolt, Sasha realized that they could actually be a real couple now, thanks to Lupin's blessing.

Sasha parted ways with Lupin shortly after the arrival of Dane and reappearance of Lena. When she said goodbye to Lupin, she was so happy she even gave him a hug, which he accepted awkwardly. Clearly he wasn't accustomed to physical contact with anybody. Sasha was too happy to think much of it. Even as the green flames of the floo network engulfed her, she kept her eyes fixed on Dane, and dreaded the awful moment before he materialized at her side in sunny Greece.

Despite the fact that the time difference made it about two hours later in the day, Greece was full of the light and energy that England so obviously lacked. For the first time since the beginning of the year, the exotic island reflected Sasha's mood. Lupin's kindness meant more to her than she could ever say.


	10. Chapter 10

Wow, BIG apology for not uploading in forever! I actually wrote this back in October, but never got around to posting it what with school work and my social life. Plus visiting universities. Anyway, I'm sure you don't care about that but I do actually have something to say. I haven't decided who I want Sasha to end up with yet, so I figured I'd ask the readers. It will probably play a big factor in who I couple her with, so please take a moment to add a comment about who you think Sasha would be best with. Thanks so much, and I'll try to up date faster. Enjoy! ^^

* * *

Sasha dropped her bags by the side of her bed, an action mimicked by both Dane and Lena, although the latter dropped her bag next to her own bed.

"I promised Phil I'd help out with the play later on. Later on meaning now and helping out meaning sitting around while she stresses out about the casting list. You kids play nice, now," commanded Lena, wagging her finger like some school teacher would to a five year old child.

When the door clicked behind her, Sasha turned to Dane, smiling. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Hey, Dane?"

"Yes?"

"I like you, and I want to be your girlfriend."

His hair was curling a little as his hair dried from the rain. Sasha pushed it back from his face so she could better see his eyes. She noticed, not for the first time, that his eyes had tiny flecks of gold around the utterly black centre that was his pupil.

He groaned. "Don't be such a tease," he said playfully.

"How am I being a tease?"

"I would love for you to be my girlfriend, but I think we both know that can't happen."

"Do we now?" Sasha said mysteriously.

Dane's face changed from playful to serious in a heartbeat. "Did you and the werewolf come to a decision?"

"Don't call him 'the werewolf," Sasha whispered as she played with the collar of Dane's robes. "And yes, we did. We're going to get married."

Dane shook his head with his eyes closed tight. "Then why are you telling me this?"

"Because he also said I could date whoever I wanted."

Dane's eyes flashed open. "What, so we can share you? Sasha, I want all of you or nothing," he said, his voice rising. "I can't do this anymore. I hurts too much. I - no," he corrected himself, pointing at Sasha's chest, "- you keep getting my hopes up, and then thing never work out. Sasha, I'm sorry." He started for the door.

"Dane, wait!" Sasha cried. Things were not working out the way she had planed. "I wouldn't be his, I would be yours."

"Did I misunderstand or did you not just say you were getting married to this guy?" Dane said coolly as he turned his head a little, not a foot from the door.

"I know it sounds weird, but we wouldn't really be together. And he said we could get divorced. Dane, please..."

Sasha hated herself as she felt hot, salty tears starting to fill her eyes. Dane on the other hand seemed concerned enough to turn around when he heard her wobbly voice beg plead to him. It just seemed so unfair that after everything that happened, she still couldn't be with Dane. He walked over to her and gently wiped the tears away with his thumb. He then carefully pulled her head into his warm chest.

"Hey you," he said in an unusually soft voice, "no tears. I'm sorry I got so mad. I'm a git, what can I say?"

"No, you're not a git. But... you do care about me, don't you?"

"Of course I do."

"Then if we have a chance of being together, even for a little while, shouldn't we at least try?"

Dane sighed, considering the offer. "To be perfectly honest, I don't think I could not be with you."

Sasha felt a smile spread across her face. She continued to cry, but now they were tears of joy. She felt as happy as when Lupin told her she was free to date Dane, scarcely an hour ago.

"How did I get so lucky?"

Dane laughed, "Sash, you're a lot of things, but lucky isn't one of them." Sasha ripped her head away from his chest to look up at him.

"You're one to talk. You know what they say; breaking a wand brings seven years bad luck."

"If this is bad luck," Dane said as he squeezed Sasha closer, "I don't want good luck."

*****

"Ha!" squealed Lena excitedly. "I can wait to see the look on her face when she reads this!"

"Hey, you got a part, too, Lena!" said Sasha, pointing at her friend's name on the audition results which was posted outside the dance room.

"Is it a good one?" asked Lena, mildly interested.

"_Beatrice_?" came an awestruck voice from behind them. Then, angrily, "You can't even act! And _Hero_?" Callista snapped, turning to Sasha. "I heard your audition! It was rushed, and sloppy, and... pathetic!"

"If mine was so sloppy, why did I get the female lead?"

Callista turned a violent shade of red. "Well, maybe it has something to do with the fact that one of your best friends is the _director_."

"Mrs. Graham is the one who approves all the casting roles, not Phil, in case you've forgotten. I'm simply better than you, so you might as well accept it."

A sly grin spread across Callista's face. "At least my father loves me."

Sasha's eyes widened, but she otherwise remained motionless. The remark was so out of the blue, she couldn't even think of a response for it. Callista smiled even more at her silence. She pushed Sasha aside to take a look at the audition sheet.

"Margaret, huh? Well, I'm sure Mrs. Graham will think better of it once we get into rehearsals." With that she turned on her heels and left.

"Don't even think about her," said Lena, softly. "She isn't worth the time."

"Yeah. Let's just go to class."

"Okay," agreed Lena.

They walked to Etiquette in silence. Sasha focused her attention on not stepping on any of the cracks in the brick path. Even as she tried to ignore the world, she could sense Lena's silent agitation beside her. Once they passed the pomegranate trees which flanked the doors of the etiquette building, Sasha decided to speak. More specifically, to lie.

"I'm not bothered, Lena, really."

Lena answered quickly, in a rush, as if she waited for Sasha to say something before she spoke. "Good, because Callista Prewett is a slimy toe rag. Additionally, I don't believe for one second that you're not bothered, but if it helps you sleep at night..."

Sasha smiled and playfully pushed Lena. "Who needs a loving father, anyway, when I have you?"

"Aw, thanks, hun," Lena said as she held the class room door open for Sasha. The room was full of easels complete with canvas. The previous week they had started watercolour painting. "Which reminds me," Lena continued as they sat down. "Reading week is coming up and I was wondering if you wanted to come to my house since your mum is in Africa."

"Actually, Dane already asked me to stay with him," Sasha said, smiling shyly.

"Ohhh!" Lena cooed. "Say no more."

"Maybe we could make an appearance one day, though?"

"Please do! It's going to be so boring, all alone. Well, not _all_ alone. My cousin is coming to stay with us," she lamented.

"Matilda?" Sasha asked in horror.

"The one and only. Thank Merlin. I would _love _to snip off those stupid red pigtails while she's asleep."

"I wouldn't do it. She'd plan out some horrible retaliation, probably involving blackmail. Why is she staying with you anyway?"

"Her parents are trying to integrate her into the wizarding world. I know her mom at least is muggle. Personally, I think they're just trying to get rid of her."

"I thought all of your family was pure blood?"

"Most of them are. I don't know, pure blood family trees are always really confusing. I think I'm even related to Callista somehow if you can believe it. Your mom's side is pure blood, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but in Russia they didn't really do that incest thing to keep the blood lines pure, so it's not nearly as confusing as it is in England. _Accio Sasha's paint supplies_," Sasha flicked her wand unconsciously. Lena did the same.

The six cakes of watercolour paint Sasha had used the previous week floated gracefully to her, followed by a cup of water and two sizes of paint brushes. She placed them on a small table beside her. Sasha lifted her head to stare at the bowl of fruit they were supposed to paint, full of determination. Last week's painting had been a dismal failure, but not this one. She got to work quickly, and, by the end of class, was left with no doubt in her mind that painting was not her thing.

She also noted, jealously, that it _was_ Lena's thing. Within the 40ish minutes, Lena had completed the painting which would take the rest of the class the better half of a week to complete. She had rendered the fruit bowl perfectly and just looking at it gave Sasha a serious craving for grapes. Priscilla Hyde even gave a contemptuous 'humph' as Professor Mullberry doted over Lena's painting. But of course, Priscilla 'humphed' over a lot of things.

In history of magic, Sasha was finally able to start memorizing her script, reading it from under her desk. The constant drone of Professor Burnsbridge, lecturing the class about the power crazed squib, Rasputin, hardly registered to Sasha. She was absolutely devouring the script, and thankfully so, since the first rehearsal was that evening. She only managed to tear herself away when Lena kicked her leg, signaling that they had to go to care of magical creatures.

It would have been almost impossible to read the script during care of magical creatures since the class was doing field work, studying a minotaur in its natural habitat: a labyrinth fifty feet under the school. As a result, Sasha had to satisfy herself with running the lines she knew through her head, over and over again. Lunch couldn't have come sooner. Sasha eagerly followed the rope Professor Rutts had dragged down with them. Eventually, the faithful old rope did indeed lead her back to the surface.

Sasha swallowed a lungful of fresh air, gratefully. The bright sun stung her eye's a little, but they'd adjust soon enough. Other girls stumbled out of the crude hole nestled in the roots of a large jacaranda tree, covering their blinded eyes. Sasha couldn't get enough of the purple flowers. She vaguely wished her mother would put a spell on her gardens back home that would make everything always in bloom. But her mother couldn't. Her mother was in Africa.

"Alright class! I want a one foot essay on the domestic tendencies of the minotaur for tomorrow. That's all. Class dismissed," Professor Rutts barked in her gruff voice.

"Domestic tendencies? Does that include chasing a class of terrified girls around in a glorified cave?"

"Maybe she meant all the cleaning he _clearly_ doesn't do."

"Typical men," Lena sighed.

"Typical girls, always talking about men," came a cheerful voice from behind. Davey, as usual, had been able to remain unnoticed by the girls until he was practically walking beside them.

Sasha snorted. "And you don't?"

"I've told you a million times, I'm not gay."

Lena snorted as well, "Okay, bud." Davey ruffled his bleach blonde hair, which, today was all swept to one side.

"You know what? You're right, Lena, I am gay. You certainly know more about my sexuality than I do," Davey said, his works dripping with sarcasm.

"Can't blame a girl for being suspicious. Doesn't really matter, though. I love you either way."

Davey swung his arm around the blonde girl's slender shoulders, "Thanks, Lena."

"No problem, hunny-bunny" she said brightly.

"How was muggle studies?" Sasha asked, changing the subject to something other than what (or rather, _who_) Davey liked to do in his very sparest of time.

"Extremely above average," Davey smiled pleasantly.

Lena made a face. "Really?" Sasha asked, suspiciously.

"Really. Jack came to class either drunk or high..."

"I'd guess both, if you mean Jack Fezziwig," interjected Lena.

"I do. Anyway, Jack came to class drunk _and_/or high," Davey said, stressing the word as he glanced sideways at Lena, "as usual, but this time Urafiki joined him in the festivities."

"Oh, God! I don't know why Ura hangs out with that low life."

"They've been best friends since the started school, what do you expect? Now, if you're done interrupting...?"

Lena brushed the comment off with an insincere, "Sorry."

"No worries. In any case, Professor Koizmi didn't realize that they were less than sober, but they wouldn't shut up," Davey said, waving his arms expressively. "They were going to get caught for sure, but then Professor Koizmi's perfect little angle came to the rescue."

"Dane?" Sasha blurted surprised.

"'S right," Davey smiled. "Your dashing soul mate. He told Koizmi that they had to go help set up for Quodpot try outs. Sort of makes sense since Jack _is _American and has been on the team every year. Still, only Osborn could get away with something like that. Not that it's generally in his character to stick his neck out for anyone else."

"Hey!" Sasha protested, mildly offended.

"The point," Davey cut her off, "is that I think _you_, Sasha Winchcombe, are the best thing that ever happened to that boy." Davey shook his head as they finally passed into the courtyard of Enchanted Rose. The roses did indeed smell very sweet in the noon day heat. "He used to be so cold. He never talked to anybody. I think you've melted his icy heart," Davey beamed as he playfully nudged Sasha's chin with his finger.

Lena had fallen silent as they reached the topic of boyfriends. As Dane wrapped his arms around Sasha's small waist from behind, Lena dropped her head.

"Hello, sunshine," he breathed happily into Sasha's thick, black locks.

Trying not to show she had seen Lena's reaction to Dane, Sasha twirled round in Dane's arms and threw her own around his neck. Smiling, she replied, "Hello yourself. I've heard you had an interesting muggle studies class," she added, tossing her head in the general direction of Davey.

Dane smiled. "I most certainly did. Speaking of which," he continued as he pushed Sasha's hair behind her ear with his right hand, "I have to go. I just came to see you for a second, but I promised Jack and Urafiki I'd go back."

Sasha's smile broadened. Dane, had, admittedly been something of a loner during his school years, a self inflicted one or not. Sasha could tell by the twinkle in Dane's eye that he was really enjoying the company of the two notorious partiers. As long as they were making Dane happy, Sasha wouldn't have cared if they were murderous drug lords.

Dane gave Sasha a quick peck on the lips before taking a step back. Sasha suddenly realized that he was changed out of his school uniform and wearing a white tee shirt and dark jeans. He looked good.

"David. Selena," Dane finally acknowledged as he backed away. Davey smiled and nodded as Lena replied, "Dane." She sounded suddenly tired, and Sasha doubted it was because they had just spent a good forty minutes running away from a crazed minotaur.

Sasha watched as Dane walked up the road to the Brixbee's campus, at one point waving before he left the courtyard.

"Come on," Davey urged, "let's get something to eat."


	11. Chapter 11

Urafiki Museveni and Jack Fezziwig sat on their solid oak beds as they waited for the return of Dane. Of all the senior boys at Barnabas Brixbee's, Urafiki and Jack were the only ones who shared a room. They had specifically asked for a shared room every year since being room mates in their first year. Since then, they spent almost every waking moment together. It had, or course, come as a shock to many that the boys had become best friends practically the moment the met. The reason for this being that Jack could speak English and a bit of Spanish, and Urafiki could only speak Swahili at the time.

Whatever bond connected them seemed invisible to almost everyone else. Jack's father owned a successful clockwork shop in New York. Ura's father was a coffee bean farmer in Uganda. Ura had dozens of exotic and strange pets. Jack had one tortoiseshell cat named Freyja. Ura was quiet, witty, and clever. Jack was a bit dim and naive, but honest and jovial. And of course, there was the language barrier.

What people didn't realize was that, upon arriving at Barnabas Brixbee's, Ura and Jack shared a moment that would glue them together for life. It was a small thing, but none the less important to them. They arrived at school via the floo network at roughly the same time. When the stern faced headmaster came to escort the small troop of boys to the dinning hall, they walked next to each other, shoulder to shoulder. When the headmaster tripped over a small Polish boy, and they were the only ones to laugh (hysterically among the group of worried first years), their fate in both detention and friendship was sealed. Laughter, it seemed, was a universal language.

They were only too pleased to find out that they shared a room. And although Jack was hopeless at learning Swahili, with Jack's help, Ura was able to learn English fast enough. Together, the boys did everything together. They took the same classes together, joined the Quodpot team together, and strove to "have good" time, together. The latter of the list being the reason they sat, swaddled in afghans, on their beds, waiting for Dane.

When a small rap was heard on the door, Ura called "Enter" almost immediately. Carefully, Dane pushed open the door and slipped in, carrying a self-heating cauldron and a few tinted bottles.

"My head hurts," lamented Jack.

"I know," answered Dane as he turned the cauldron over on the desk. Various dried herbs, tied with twine fell out. "That's why I brought this. Now, what exactly did you guys take?"

"A gram of snout-moss each," replied Ura, in his warm, deep voice.

"I thought so...," said Dane more to himself than anything.

Turning the cauldron back on it's base, Dane tapped it with his wand, causing it to heat up instantly. He uncorked one of the bottles and poured half it's unpleasant, yellowish contents into the cauldron. He did the same in varying quantities to two of the other bottles, pausing to stir the contents with his wand before he did so each time. He tore up a few of the herbs and sprinkled it over the concoction. Finally, he added a little mint to help mask the taste of the the potion, although neither Ura nor Jack had any idea what he was doing. During this process, no one had spoken; Dane from concentration, Ura and Jack from sickness.

Dane conjured a couple of mugs and dipped them into the cauldron, filling them up with a steaming brown liquid. He handed the mugs to Ura and Jack, who downed the contents with the mastery of one accustomed to jager bombs. Suddenly, it was as if a fog lifted from the heads of Ura and Jack.

Jack threw his afghan off as he said to Dane, with a big grin on his face, "Aw, man, I love you!" He then proceeded to pull out three beers from under his bed, handing the two extra to his companions. Dane shook his head at Jack's single-mindedness, but accepted the bottle anyway. He then slid down the wall to sit on the floor.

"Yeah, I'm surprised, Dane. We should hang out more. This is nice," said Ura as he stretched back on his bed.

It _was_ nice, and Dane was surprised. He had been as shocked as any when he had rescued them from being caught for drug use (and they certainly would have been caught). He couldn't watch them get kicked out of school, all the while knowing he could have prevented it. Being with Sasha had certainly opened him up to kindness, however small the action. He even walked the guys back to their dorm room. Along the way, they talked about nothing, and it was the most entertaining conversation Dane had enjoyed in a long while. It was like having friends, Dane thought. Not that he had ever had any, apart from Sasha.

During his childhood, Dane's father had tried to isolate his large family. To control them so they could never leave. His five kids were at least allowed to go to school, but his wife was literally forced to stay. Years of torment had reduced her to nothing better than a squib, and she absolutely could not fight the spell off. Could not fight the curse off. Since running away, or being kicked out depending on how one looked at it (either way, he could not stay with his family any longer), Dane had found something close to love in the wiccan muggle, Aridne. She made him feel like her own son. Then there was Sasha. Flawed, beautiful, frustrating, intoxicating, Sasha. She had set his world on fire with one glance of her silver grey eyes.

"Mm. I just think it's a shame that we could have had so much more time together," Jack said, sloppily. His permanent drunken slur shook Dane from his thoughts.

"It's alright, buddy. He's here now, and that's the important thing," Ura said, nodding his head confidently at Jack to comfort him.

"Ura?"

"Yeah, buddy?"

"Are we actually supposed to help set up for Quodpot tryouts?"

"No."

"Decent. Ura?"

"Yeah?"

"Are the tryouts today?"

"Yeah, but we've got a couple hours. Don't worry."

"Alright. Dane?"

Dane, who had been quiet up until this point, raised his head in surprise of his name being called. "What?"

"Are you gonna try out for Quodpot?"

"Er, no. I don't think so."

Jack flipped onto his stomach and asked in a serious tone, "How come?"

Dane shrugged. "'Don't know how to play."

"It's easy. Each team has 11 players. Each side of the pitch has a pot. Try to get the Quod - "

"-The ball-," Ura interjected.

"- into the pot, before it explodes. Get it in, your team gets a point. If the ball explodes while you're in possession, you get benched."

"That's pretty much it," Ura confirmed.

"I don't really play English sports, never mind American ones."

"But you go to an International school, don't you?" Jack said, oblivious to his puppy dog eyes.

"Come on, Dane. Don't be a wet blanket," Ura teased. Then he laughed, "You want to impress that pretty girly of yours, don't you?"

Sasha. Dane's stomach tightened.

"What girly?" asked Jack, confused, but very much intrigued. He jumped onto Ura's bed.

"Sasha Winchcombe."

Sitting up quickly, Jack proclaimed, "Oh, that girl is smokin'!"

Ura nudged him in the ribs.

"I didn't mean anything, I'm just sayin'. Good choice, man, good choice."

Dane knew Jack didn't mean any harm. He had only really known them for less than an hour, despite having been classmates with Ura and Jack for just over six years, but he was quiet enjoying himself. Admittedly, he had always taken the pair for idiots, but now he saw they were good natured, and easy to be with. They didn't put pressure on you to have a conversation. They were like Sasha in that respect. And, hey, things had gone well with Sasha...


	12. Chapter 12

So, I actually kind of finished this series ages ago, but I lost interest in fanfictions and never uploaded them. It wasn't until I was going through some old files on my computer that I rediscovered them, as well as a couple of other stories I never even began to upload. I have a bit of free time tonight, so I decided to put a couple up. I'll try to finish the job in the next couple of weeks. Basically, sorry you had to wait so long. Enjoy :)

* * *

"You're kidding!" Sasha laughed as she dabbed Dane's bleeding lip with a handkerchief. They were in Dane's room. "They" meaning Dane, Sasha, Lena, Davey, Ura, and Jack. The latter two had brought a bucket of beer. The reason? Dane had made the Quodpot team. It was quickly becoming an interesting night.

Davey, Lena, and Ura sat on the bed. Dane sat on the room's only chair, Sasha positioned on his lap. Jack stood near the window, fiddling with a nerf gun. Ura had slipped a CD in Dane's stereo set and cranked the volume up. When Sasha, Lena, and Davey arrived at Dane's dorm building, they had wondered where the music was coming from. It was fair to say they were more than a little surprised to find Urafiki Museveni and Jack Fezziwig in Dane's room, drinking their hearts out. Sasha was more surprised to see Dane's face, smeared with both a boyish grin and blood.

"Nope!" boasted Ura. "He was fantastic. And, man can this guy take a hit!" Dane's smile broadened, causing him to cringe because of the tear in his lip.

"What exactly happened to his face?" asked Lena, tentatively.

Ura sat up straighter. "Okay! Bernie Blowstein was playing on the opposite team. Now, Bernie is a big guy, remember. Anyway, he's almost to our team's pot, then Dane comes along and hits him in the side. Bernie's hit off course and has to circle around again. Dane positions himself in front of the pot and blocks his path, only Bernie speeds up! Dane holds his ground and it everyone's like 'who is going to spook first?' Bernie is like, a foot away from Dane and it looks like he is just going to run over him, but then it's too late! The Quod explodes, right under his chin. He looses control, and crashes into Dane anyway - albeit not as hard as he would have - but the point is, Dane held his ground. Exactly what Alberto was looking for. He didn't even wait for tryouts to finish, let alone to write up the formal list, to tell Dane he made the team!"

"GO TEAM!" Jack shouted drunkenly from the corner of the room, still crooning over the nerf gun.

Ura ran his hand over his face. "It was incredible. Alberto said Jack and I also made the team, after tryouts. I think we all made Hinkle's team, too, but he didn't say. I guess we'll have to wait for all the lists to come out.

"Hinkle?" Lena asked.

"Hubert Hinkle. He looks sort of like an overgrown plimpy, but a preppy one, you know? He's got this little baby face, and nicely combed hair that just makes him look like he's going to say some thing extremely English."

"What do you mean 'extremely English'?" Lena asked with one eyebrow arched abnormally high.

"Like, 'By Jove, what smashing weather! Let's play a nice game of quodpot, shall we?'" Jack imitated, in an over exaggerated English accent. "You know what I mean?"

There was a brief, and awkward silence in the room as everyone stared at Jack.

"I see that the years you've spend among dozens of British peers has not been wasted on you. I have to say, I appreciated the artistic licence you took throwing a bit of cockney into that mess," Lena with flat sarcasm.

"Anyway," Ura changed the subject swiftly, "I'd rather play for the Krakens."

"Because you prefer the team, or the captian?" Davey asked, playing along.

"Well, I love Alberto, but the Krakens hold a special place in my heart," Ura answered, solemnly. "After playing for the Cwn Annwn's first year-"

"-Who sucked ass -," Jack added.

"- we knew we _had_ to get accepted by the Krakens. They were the absolute best team, with Roy Kirkwick as the captain, third year running."

"Unprecedented! Unheard of!" Jack said, as if he were cheering the team on.

"We practised every night-"

"-whether we were drunk or not-"

"-and every weekend-"

"-when we were definitely drunk-"

"-and it paid off. We made the team. I just remember falling off my broom from heat exhaustion. I remember how my hands used to bleed from holding on to the broom so tight, and for so long."

"I remember having to go to the nurse's office to get rid of the rash on my perineum from sitting on the broom so long," Jack said, eyes wide from the memory.

"What's a perineum?" Lena asked.

"It's that bit of skin between your-," Jack began before being cut off by Ura.

"-It's a special place," he said hastily. "Anyway, the point is, we worked all summer and every moment we could spare at school training to make be offered a spot by the Krakens, and I for one am not going to give that up."

"Me neither!" said Jack, a bit louder than nessecary.

"Okay, so there is the Krakens, the Cwn Annwns... and who?"

"The Teumessians and the Hydras."

"Goddamn Hydras..." Jack said in a low, threatening voice.

"Your main rivals?" asked Sasha, as if she didn't already know.

"Damn straight," piped Ura. "And this year we're going to cream them even harder than we usually do."

Sasha thoughtfully moved a strand of black hair out of Dane's face. He smiled at her.

"And you fit into this operation how, exactly?" Sasha asked.

Dane smirked. "They need a guy who isn't afraid to take a hit. That's basically the objective of quodpot. Get burned, bruised, beat, but for Merlin's sake, keep playing."

"Exactly," agreed Ura. "He's a fast learner, your boyfriend is," Ura added, pointing at Sasha, who then looked affectionately at her (admittedly battered looking) boyfriend.

_Boyfriend. _She didn't think she'd ever have one, and yet, here was a dashing, brooding, man she could call her own. His dark eyes looked up at her with a twinkle, as if he was sharing a funny secret. In a week, Sasha would be back in England for reading week. This time, however, instead of staying with her father, she would be with Dane and his old "wiccan" friend in an old, run down village. She couldn't wait, to her own surprise. Generally speaking, she hated England. Cold places in general bothered her. She was endlessly happy when her grandparents moved from Russia to Spain. Years of experience taught her that Russian winters were not fun.

"So," asked Lena, thinking hard, "you have to tryout for a team?"

"Sort of, but not exactly," answered Ura. "Basically, anyone who wants to play goes to the pitch for tryouts. Everyone completes a basic relay, of sorts, and who ever is left after that gets split into two teams. The teams face off in a basic match, and the captains for each of the four teams make notes on who they like. They'll invite about 20 guys to join each, but you have to RSVP really quickly, or else your team of choice will get filled."

"And if no one invites you?"

"There's always next year," said Jack, as he finally abandoned the nerf gun and dived onto the bed, which was far too over crowded. Sasha was thankful for Dane's comfy lap as she saw Lena's face, contorted with discomfort.

"There is one good thing if I make the team," announced Dane.

"What?" asked Jack.

"The matches are at the same time as the _Much Ado About Nothing_ rehearsals. It's a bloody good excuse, isn't it?" Sasha jabbed Dane in the ribs, playfully. "Ow, tender!"

"Awww, poor baby!" Sasha laughed, pinching his cheek.

Jack tossed her another beer, Ura turned the music up, and the night went on. It was early in the morning when Dane walked Sasha and Lena home. Lena had to rely on Dane's shoulder to not fall over. After they had gotten back to their dorm room, Lena had essentially passed out on her bed, and Dane kissed Sasha good night, Sasha noticed Sandy was sitting up in her bed.

"Jesus, Sandy, I nearly peed myself!"

"Sorry," said Sandy with her hands up in defence. "It's just I thought of something and didn't want to wait until morning to tell you."

"What is it?"

"Remember how we said that we'd some up with a plan so you wouldn't have to marry that werewolf?"

"Yes," said Sasha reluctantly. Sandy's timing was a little off. The problem was virtually solved already.

"Well, I actually thought of something. It's the oldest trick in the book. Make _him_ mad at you, so he'll dump you. I' mean, it's not exactly like you're dating, but I think it's basically the same premise."

"Thanks Sandy, but I think things are going pretty well."

She shrugged. "Just something to chew on." Sandy then slipped underneath her blankets, leaving Sasha alone in the dark with her thoughts.

"Oh, God defend me! How am I beset! What kind of catechising call you this?" Sasha cried.

In her eyes she prepared hot tears. Being able to cry on cue was a great advantage for an actress. An advantage Callista didn't have, Sasha reminded herself, smugly. The blonde viper had been particularly nasty the entire week. It was finally Friday, and the first rehearsal for _Much Ado About Nothing_.

"Wonderful, Sasha! Absolutely magnificent!" praised Mrs. Graham after the fourth act. "And well done everyone else! Unfortunately we'll miss next Friday to reading week, so we'll have to have up for it by rescheduling for the Monday after everyone gets back." There was a groan throughout the theatre, but Mrs. Graham didn't seem to notice. Instead, she turned her attention to one of the first years who was working on the set design.

Lena bounded over. "That was brilliant, Sash! I nearly decked the poor bloke playing Claudio at one point."

Sasha laughed. "Some fruit punch came out my nose at the expression on your face when Beatrice is first told Benedick loves her."

"Charming," Callista said scathingly as she walked past to hang up her costume.

"Funny. Could have sworn we were having a private conversation, Lena," Sasha said loudly.

"Yeah. Could have fooled me," Lena said, equal in volume.

Callista rolled her eyes.

"Oh, Merlin! I still have to pack for Dane's," Sasha said to Lena seriously.

"Hurry up! You'll miss the party."

"_You're_ going to the party?" snapped Callista.

"Now, I _know_ we've talked about eavesdropping, Callista," said Sasha.

"Oh, save it, Winchcombe. What time is the party, anyway?"

"The beach party? Everyone's been talking about it for the past week, and no one even told you the time. How sad it must be to not have any friends," Lena said, surreptitiously.

"Sorry if I don't jot down every little detail of information the children of this school tell me. _Some _of us have actually been focusing on school work this year, like mature young ladies should. Surprising, I'm sure, for those who spend half their time in a broom closet with Dane Osborn, or wishing they were in a broom closet with Dane Osborn. I'm not sure which is worse," Callista pretended to ponder.

"By 'focusing on school work', is it safe to assume you mean shamelessly shagging Coach Telchines?"

"Even if that were true, Selena Castwick," Callista said narrowing her eyes," I would a thousand times rather be with a Greek god like Gervasius Telcines than doomed to lust after my best friend's boyfriend."

Sasha saw Lena's hand twitch for her wand.

"Callista," Sasha said, suddenly very tired, "the party starts at 11. Why don't you go down to the beach, throw back a few shots, and make some guy's night a very happy one."

"Gladly," Callista said as her neck snapped towards Sasha. "But keep in mind, _Sash_, for once I'm not strictly being a bitch. You better watch your back, or this one will put a wand to it," she said, flicking Lena's nose as she walked away.

Callista then slipped out of the red curtain. Sasha still hadn't changed out of her temporary costume. She and Lena changed quickly, and without talking. Sasha couldn't help but think about what Callista had said. Did Lena like Dane? Well, of course she did, they were all friends now. Sandy, Phil, Jack, Ura, Davey, Lena, Dane, and of course, herself, Sasha. But before that, before Dane, how many times had Lena mentioned how hot he was? How many suggestive comments had she made? And worse still, why hadn't Lena dismissed Callista's accusation? Why wasn't she talking?

"I'm just going to head down to the beach now. I'll see you later, okay?" Lena said, after what felt like an eternity.

"Yeah. See you later."

"Good luck packing," Lena said as she, like Callista before her, pushed the red velvet curtain aside and trampled down the stage's stairs.

Sasha listened as the heavy door swung shut behind Lena. Sasha was now all alone. She paced a bit, before finally settling on a big, old trunk, filled with props for the play. Lena couldn't like Dane. She just couldn't. It would be a total violation of the girl code. And where would that leave their friendship? As Sasha pondered her situation, the theatre went dark. Absolutely, pitch black, dark. It must have been 10:30, when the enchanted candles were set to go out.

"Oh, shrivelfig," Sasha swore. She felt for her wand and got a sinking feeling in her stomach when she realized it was not in her pocket.

"It must have fallen out when I was changing," Sasha whispered to the darkness.

She was practically an adult, but Sasha felt frightened at the prospect of being alone in the dark. She sunk to her knees and began reaching out for it. Her hands carefully explored the floor, but to no avail. They came up empty. She tried _lumos_ a few times, even aloud, but nothing resulted. It was clearly too far away. As he knocked into something, causing something else to fall on her head, Sasha thought she heard a _creeeeeeak _coming from... somewhere.

She stood back up, and found that she was already disoriented. Crawling around on the floor, mixed with the pacing before that, contributed to the fact that Sasha could now not tell where the front of the stage was, let alone the stairs, or door to get out.

"This can't be happening," Sasha breathed miserably.

"What can't?" asked a voice from behind her.

Sasha's heart stopped.


	13. Chapter 13

"_Lumos_," said the voice, quickly.

Sasha's eyes grew wide. "Remus?"

"I didn't mean to frighten you. I came to see you and your friend Sandy said I might find-"

"-I'm sorry, were you trying to scare me to death?" she asked, angrily.

Even in the scarce light, Sasha could tell Lupin was blushing. "I'm sorry."

"Never mind," she said, blushing herself in embarrassment of her reaction. She had narrowly avoided letting out a scream of shock at his sudden presence. "Can you help me find my wand?"

"Yes, of course," Lupin said quickly. "But would you first permit me to ask a question?"

"You can _ask_," Sasha said, instantly realizing how rude she sounded.

Lupin laughed. "What were you doing here alone in the dark?"

"I had rehearsal. The lights turn off at 10:30, and I wasn't paying attention to the time."

"I see."

"May _I_ ask a question?"

"You can ask," Lupin mocked. A smile played across his lips as he got on his knees. Sasha's heart stopped once again, until she realized that he was just searching for her wand.

"What are _you _doing here?"

Lupin's tone turned to a more serious one. "I was looking for you. I tried your dorm, and obviously you weren't there. Your roommate Sandy said I might find you here," came his muffled voice, head hidden by the costume rack.

"Alright, but I mean on a larger scale. What are you doing _here_, as in on the island?"

"Ah ha! Got it!" Lupin said triumphantly. He handed Sasha her wand, which she thanked him for. Lupin returned to his feet.

"You still haven't answered the question," Sasha said, not taking her eyes off of him.

He was tall and, as emaciated as he was, at least twice the width of Sasha. And yet, how she had ever been afraid of this quiet, calm man was a mystery to Sasha. For some reason, when she looked at Remus, she pictured standing next to a gentle bear. Sasha used a non verbal spell to light her wand, and then led Lupin to the stairs. Her light feet flew down the stairs compared to Lupin, who appeared to be quite sore.

"Well, I believe I mentioned that I would have to visit you relatively often. Your father also mentioned that you have a reading week off. He suggested that you go home tonight, and perhaps you and I could get to know each other a little better. I must confess that I have invaded upon your father's hospitality, and have been staying there recently."

Ignoring the fact that she didn't like Remus staying at her father's house, Sasha answered him truthfully. "I'm sorry, I already made plans. I'm going to Dane's tomorrow."

"Oh," said Remus, surprised. "I understand. You're not leaving tonight?"

"No. There's this big party tonight over at the boy's school. Everyone with a social life is going."

Again Lupin smiled, though even in the dim light, Sasha could tell he looked a little sad.

"You should come," Sasha found her self saying.

Now Lupin looked amused. "Me? Don't you think I'd look just a little conspicuous?"

"I doubt it, to be honest. These Greek parties tend to be pretty...," Sasha couldn't think of the right word. "Wild" didn't quite cover it. Instead, to ease Lupin's nerves she said, "Inclusive," quickly adding, "Well, if you come, you'll see, at any rate."

"You're serious, aren't you?" Lupin asked as he held the door open for Sasha.

"Mm-hm."

"And you're sure it will be alright?"

"I'm sure," Sasha laughed, looking up at the sky.

The stars never looked quite as bright as they did on the island, in Sasha's opinion. The air was not quite as fresh anywhere else, either. The crunch of gravel under her feet emphasized the silence that had settled between the two as Sasha led Lupin to her dorm.

"Why are you staying at my father's house?" Sasha asked, suddenly.

Lupin looked at her. "Well, I don't exactly have a home of my own, as I am sure you have guessed."

"But why _his_ house?"

Lupin gave a slightly bitter laugh. "You really don't like him, do you?"

Sasha looked at him seriously. "Tell me, in all the time you've been in his house, have you seen a single picture of me?"

Lupin's face twisted in concentration. "I can't say that I have."

"And have you asked him any questions about me?"

"A few," Lupin admitted.

"How many has he been able to answer?"

"Well..."

"Yeah. You see, he's not too fond of me, either."

After a brief silence, during which time Sasha's dorm came into view, Lupin began to speak again.

"You're right. He couldn't answer any questions about you. So why don't you tell me yourself?"

Sasha shrugged. "What do you want to know?"

"What's your favourite colour?"

"Purple."

"Any hobbies?"

"Well, not like chocolate frog card collecting, if that's what you mean. I love shopping. Although, to be perfectly honest, that's more like an obsession with me."

Lupin cracked a smile. "Fair enough. Favourite spell, and why?"

Sasha cast a sideways glance at Lupin. "That's a weird one, but okay," she said, amused. "Hmm. _Orchideous_, because I love flowers."

Sasha unlocked her door room and, with a flick of her wand, caused flames to spring to life in the candles throughout the room.

"I have to pack for tomorrow, but I promise I'll be quick. Oh, and I have to change."

"Take your time," said Lupin, patiently.

"Please, have a seat," Sasha said, gesturing absent-mindedly to Phil's bed.

She heard the springs creak with Lupin's weight as she pulled out a small trunk Dane had lent her from under her bed. They were leaving on the Saturday and coming back on the Friday night. She would need to pack six outfits then, as well as plan one out for the Saturday. Tomorrow. She would have liked to spend a little more time picking out her clothes, considering how badly she wanted to make a good impression on Dane's employer-mother-figure-person. She felt pressured to work quickly, however, with Lupin looking over her shoulder. Sasha noticed he became unusually fascinated by Phil's enchanted alarm clock when it came time to pack her underwear. Sasha began to feel like she was always doing something with underwear when Lupin was around. Lena would no doubt have some suggestive joke about it.

"Done!" Sasha announced, happily. Lupin just smiled. "Just give me a sec to get changed."

Sasha surveyed her remaining clothes. In the end she took out a silver sequined tube top and a short, white, spandex skirt. She also grabbed her favorite pair of bright blue ankle boots. She ran into the bathroom and quickly changed. Abandoning her old clothes to the floor, Sasha put her clothes on over top of her gold bikini. She muttered a quick charm to straighten her hair, added a bit of body glitter, fixed her mascara, and then decided she was ready.

When Sasha walked out of the bathroom, she asked Lupin, "How do I look?"

"Oh," said Lupin, slightly surprised. "You look good,"

He then you looked down at his own, tattered robes. "Sasha, are you sure about this?"

"Positive. Now let's go!" she urged.

It only took a few minutes to reach the party. It was on the beach near Dane's dorm. As Sasha had predicted, the party was already well underway. There were easily two hundred people crammed onto the small stretch of beach which jutted out from the rocky cliff. The was a Tiki bar set up on the far end and people were already being thrown into the water by their friends. The music was pumping so loud, Sasha could see, standing on the cliff, small pebbles shaking from the vibrations. She took one last look at Lupin.

"Have you ever been to Las Vegas?"

"I can't say that I have," Lupin answered truthfully.

"Well, it's the same sort of deal here. What happens at the beach stays at the beach. Okay?"

Lupin look rather unsure of himself, but before he could give a verbal protest, Sasha was scampering down the "stairs", if planks of rotting wood could even be called stairs. Once she was at the bottom, she realized just how far out of hand the party had already gotten. Someone (or more likely, a large group of people) had managed to get the minotaur out of his labyrinth. He was trapped in a cage while people took pictures next to it.

"Sasha!" called a familiar voice, excitedly. Jack slid a tequila shot into her hand. "Bottoms up, my fine feathered friend!" he said, lifting his own shot glass.

Sasha threw her head back simultaneously with Jack.

"No lime?" Sasha asked after as her face winced with the strength of the drink.

"Sorry. Lost it," he winked.

"What do you mean you 'lost it'? How do you loose a slice of lime?" Sasha asked, curious.

"I used it after my last shot," Jack explained, "but then some blonde took it out of my mouth. With her mouth. No complaints here."

Sasha laughed. "Did she take your shirt too?" she asked, looking down at Jack's bare chest.

Jack looked down too. "No. No that would have been Ura," he said, shrugging afterwards.

Sasha raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't ask why he wanted it. Just sort of fuck it, I thought... Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to find my little lime thief," Jack said, already looking around for her with a mischievous grin.

"Good hunting!" Sasha wished him.

Just as Jack left, Lupin finally got down the stairs.

"Is that a minotaur?" Lupin asked, horrified at the blatant cruelty to beasts.

"Vegas, Lupin. Vegas. Just enjoy yourself tonight."

"Sasha, that is easily a 100 galleon fine..."

"Please," Sasha said, putting on her best puppy dog look. "For me?"

Lupin hesitated for a moment. "If anyone hurts him..."

"I'll be the first to draw my wand. Now come on. Let's get something to drink."

Lupin followed Sasha to the bar. He looked calm on the outside, but Sasha felt his unease. She understood where he was coming from. Most of the people here were half his age, with the exception of the minotaur and Coach Telchines, who had abandoned his chaperone duties to to partake in a deep make out session with Callista on a shadowy ledge of the cliff. Sasha strained her eyes to see many couples on the ledge of the cliff. It was a good spot, Sasha concluded. Far from the Tiki torches, it was nearly impossible to see anyone if you weren't looking for them. She wouldn't have been able to see Callista at all, except her platinum blonde hair, which was pulled back into an elaborate pony tail, reflected the fire light.

"What can I get for you, sweety?" asked the dark haired bar tender. His accent suggested he was from Portugal.

"Something fruity," Sasha said loudly, trying to be heard over the reggae music which was playing.

"A Vixen for the vixen, then," he smiled. Sasha smiled back.

"What about your friend?" he asked, gesturing his head to Remus as he measured the Malibu rum.

"He'll have an Irish Car Bomb, please and thank-you."

Sasha pulled out her wallet to pay, but the bar tender insisted, "On the house, sweet thing." Then, quieter, he said, "If you ever feel like ditching the dragon..." gesturing to Lupin.

"I'll know where to find you," Sasha assured him. She took the drinks and handed Remus his.

As they began to walk away, Sasha heard the bar tender starting to hit on some other girl. She smiled as she took a sip from her vixen.

"Are you going to take your cloak off?" Sasha asked Remus.

"Maybe later," he shouted. "May I ask you a few more questions?"

"Only if I can ask you some this time."

Lupin smiled, "That sounds fair." He awkwardly took a sip from his glass.

"Let me go first then," Sasha said.

"Alright."

Sasha racked her brain for something she wanted to ask Lupin. Finally, she got something, but decided she would work her way up to it.

"What is _your _favourite colour?"

"Blue. What's your favourite flavour?"

"Mango. Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No. What's your favourite subject?"

"Charms," Sasha answered. She then decided to ask the question she really wanted to know. "What's it like? Being... different?"

Lupin's smile faltered. He looked around to see if anyone was listening before he turned to face her. Sasha thought he was going to tell her to drop it, but then he answered. "It's lonely. Often painful, physically and emotionally, but mostly lonely."

Sasha stared at him hard. She had expected him not to answer. The fact that he did threw her off. Her father never would have answered. This Remus Lupin was so foreign to everything she knew. Lupin smiled slightly.

"That wasn't fair; I only asked you simple things. Now I have to ask you a real question."

Sasha took a large swig from her drink. "Okay," she said, unsure.

"I noticed you only packed six outfits."

"Yeah..." said Sasha, uncertainly.

"May I assume then that you are returning on the Friday?"

"Yes."

"Well then, Sasha Winchcombe, my question is this: Will you consider having dinner _next_ Friday at your father's house, since you could not come this Friday?"

Sasha eyed Lupin, whose golden eyes looked right back at her. "You didn't come here just to see me, did you?" she asked finally, guessing at an ulterior motive. The guilty expression on Lupin's face told her she was right, even though he never got to, because as he opened his mouth, Sasha found herself being almost knocked over by a hug.

"Sash! I've been looking everywhere for you!" Sandy slurred, a little drunkenly.

"Well, don't you look hot," said Phil as she ran her fingers through her chestnut brown hair, which now fell half way down her back. She was wearing a white blouse tied to reveal her flat tummy and a yellow cotton skirt.

"You're one to talk," Sasha replied, looking at her friend admiringly. "Darran Finnigan must be kicking himself for letting you go."

"Oh, I think he is," said Sandy. "He saw Phil was playing quarters with Musa Oljeitu earlier, and then he got jealous and tried to retaliate by flirting with Drusilla Trung. He scared the crap out of her, poor thing."

"That's awful."

"It wasn't so bad. When Drusilla's boyfriend saw he decked him pretty good. Knocked him right out, which actually is a bit of a loss. There hasn't been a single fight yet," Sandy lamented. "Hey, maybe if you start flirting with some guy Dane will fight him!"

Phil snorted. "As if. It wouldn't even cross Dane's mind that Sasha would cheat on him, so why bother?"

Remus shifted uncomfortably. "Where is Dane?" asked Sasha, suddenly.

"He went off with Ura and the rest of their quodpot team. They're _positive_ they saw a kraken swimming around and have gone off to find it."

"Boys," Sandy rolled her eyes. "Who needs them."

"Yeah," agreed Phil. "Come on, let's dance!"

Sandy's face lit up. Sasha turned to Lupin. "Will you be okay on your own?"

"I think I'm old enough to take care of myself, thank you, Sasha. Go. Have fun." He smiled kindly.

"Yeah? Okay. Don't get into any trouble while I'm gone," Sasha called as Sandy led her away. She saw Remus chuckle before she was consumed by the throng of dancing people.

Sandy led her right into the centre of the crowd. A trance song started playing and someone cast a spell to make a light show. A swirl of grey fog also fell upon the dance area. Sasha felt just as if she were at a real rave. At least three more techno songs passed due to popular demand. Then on the fourth song, Sasha felt a familiar set of arms wrap around her. She leaned her head back onto Dane's chest and let him guide her hips to the music.

"How did the kraken hunt go?"

He inhaled deeply. "Surprisingly, we didn't find one," he said with sly sarcasm.

"Really?" Sasha laughed, feeling at home in Dane's arms.

"Well, maybe you should take a look. I hear krakens can be lured by beautiful women."

Sasha's smile widened. "You're so full of it," she snorted.

Dane twisted his neck so he could kiss Sasha. "Come," was all he said.

Dane then took Sasha's hand and led her through the crowd. She could hear Sandy's cat calls even over the music. Most guys, including Dane, had followed Jack's example and were now shirtless. Apart from a few with muscle shirts, they either were wearing only board shorts or swimming trunks. Sasha was surprised (and rather horrified) at one point to see Jack wearing a purple speedo, despite the fact that only a short while ago he had certainly been wearing yellow trunks. Dane high-fived him.

Dane and Sasha walked side by side into the cool water. They only stopped when the water reached Sasha's shoulders. Dane hugged her from behind and they looked up at the sky together. The moon was already falling in the sky. Sasha didn't need to be in astronomy to know that the sun was due to rise in a few short hours. Three at the most. Dane breathed in her sweet smelling hair.

"What are you thinking about?" Dane asked, knowing something was bothering Sasha.

"Remus Lupin showed up tonight."

He sighed. "Your fiancée."

"That's the one. I brought him to the party," she added, quietly.

Dane rested his chin on her head. "Did you?" he asked, sounding suddenly very tired.

"Yes, I did," said Sasha, with a slight edge to her voice.

"Oh, come on Sash," Dane whispered in her hear. "Please don't blame me for not being thrilled about it."

"I don't blame you," she said, barely audible above the roar of the waves and blast of the distant music. Not too far away there were some guys trying to drown each other in the water, girls practising handstands in the water, and other couples kissing under the starry sky.

"That's not what is bothering you, is it?"

"No, and if you'd shut up for long enough, I'd be able to tell you what is," Sasha teased.

"Oh-ho," said Dane as he tickled Sasha, who instantly began to squirm and giggle. "Well, if you're going to be rude..."

"Da-Dane!" Sasha said hysterically, gasping for breath. A few guys nearby got the wrong message and began to snicker. They did swim away, though. Dane laughed and stopped tickling her.

"Come on. What's wrong?" he said, pleadingly.

"I have to go to my dad's for dinner next Friday."

"Well, that's good, isn't it? You're spending more time together."

"You clearly don't know my dad very well. There is something very wrong. He would never invite me to dinner unless he had a specific reason."

"Is spending time with his daughter not specific enough?"

"No. I am trying to get along better with him, but 17 years of experience tells me not to trust this."

"So, are you going to go?"

"I don't know. What do you think?"

"I think that you have a week to weigh your options. I think that you should just try to enjoy tonight."

Sasha nodded. "You're so good to me," she smiled.

Dane laughed. "I really am, aren't I? Much better than you deserve."

Sasha nudged him in the ribs. She turned around, however, and put her arms over his shoulders.

"You're right, actually. I'm really lucky."

"Dumb luck," Dane offered, before leaning down to place a kiss on Sasha's lips. The single kiss was followed by many others before they actually began to make out. Eventually Sasha broke away.

"Do you want to go back?" Dane asked.

"No," Sasha said reluctantly.

Dane smiled. "Do you think we _should_ go back?"

"Probably," she answered, looking at the beach.

Sandy was dancing on top of the minotaur cage. The minotaur was no longer in the cage. Many people were passed out on the beach. Jack was lying on his back, cradled by four girls. The Tiki bar appeared to have suffered a fire, and what was left was charred beyond recognition, not to mention the remains were smoking heavily. And most importantly, Lupin was standing at the edge of the beach, no doubt waiting for Sasha.

"Right. Well, I'm going to find Ura, then," said Dane upon noticing Lupin. They began to walk together back to the beach.

"Okay. I'll probably just see you tomorrow then." Once the waves began to crash against the back of their knees, Dane gave her a final kiss on the cheek and went off to the left, both to find Ura and avoid Lupin.

"Have fun?" Sasha asked, once she was close enough to Lupin.

"It was... interesting," he mused with a smile. "I particularly enjoyed watching the beer-pong tournament."

"Oh, man! They were playing beer-pong?"

"Attempting to. I think they would have been more successful if they had started out sober."

"I'm sorry I left you for so long."

"As I said before, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself." Lupin smiled. "In any case, I had a nice chat with a fellow called Telchines?"

"Coach Telchines? Oh Merlin," said Sasha. She looked around. Sandy was still dancing on top of the minotaur cage, but there was no question the party was winding down. "Why don't you walk me back and tell me all about it?"

His smile widened and he inclined his head slightly. "It would be my pleasure."

"Well, he was quite intoxicated when I met him, but he seemed to recognize you when I mentioned your name."

"He would. He went to every one of my rehearsals last year. He's sort of dating another one of the actresses."

"He's dating a student?"

"Well," sighed Sasha, as she began to climb the rickety stairs, "in all fairness he isn't a teacher at _her _school. He's the coach at our brother school, Barnabas Brixbee."

"I see. How old is he, exactly?"

"24."

"7 years. That's quite an age difference."

Once she had reached the top of the stairs, Sasha looked at Lupin. "Yeah, and how old are _you_ exactly?And we're supposed to be getting married. They're only dating."

"I see your point," admitted Lupin.

"He said you were quite a good actress. And that your boyfriend is a good Quodpot player."

"So I've heard. I haven't had a chance to see him play yet."

"Your father didn't mention that you like acting."

"I doubt he knows," Sasha said simply.

"What play are you putting on this year?"

"_Much Ado About Nothing_. I play Hero."

"I must admit I've never seen it."

"Neither have I, to be perfectly honest. I hadn't even read it until this year."

"Do you want to be an actress professionally?"

"I don't know," Sasha sighed. "In an ideal world I think I'd like to be, but it doesn't seem realistic. Do you have a job?"

"Currently, no. I'd like to say that my time is currently invested in other activities, which is true to some extent, but even if it weren't I think it is highly unlikely that I could find a job."

"What do you mean '_currently'_?"

"I used to be a professor at Hogwarts, and have had several small jobs. Nothing very lucrative."

"What did you teach?"

"Defence Against the Dark Arts."

"Were you good at it?"

Lupin laughed. "I think I was reasonably successful, yes. There is some irony in a werewolf teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts, however."

"But you liked it?"

"Exceptionally."

"So what happened? Why aren't you still teaching?"

"A colleague of mine let slip my condition, and I resigned," he said simply.

Sasha shook her head. "I don't get you."

"What do you mean?" asked Lupin, puzzled.

"I just don't get you. People have treated you like crap all your life (and I am not excluding myself from that list), but you keep trying to help anyway. You try to help kids learn, and someone basically gets you fired."

"I'm not sure I would have been fired. I just thought it would make things easier for everyone."

"Some guy asks you to help with with some completely mental ploy and give up any chance of romance. In return you get stuck with some selfish little brat."

Lupin smiled bitterly. "Believe me, I would never have endangered anyone by having a romantic life. Anyway, you're a child; you're allowed to be selfish. Furthermore, you can be quite endearing when you want to be."

Sasha ignored him and went to her final point. "And you help out the Order doing Merlin knows what and now you don't have any time for yourself. Not even enough to get a job."

"Who told you that I am in the Order?" Lupin asked seriously, his body tensing up immediately.

"You did, just now. Before it was only a suspicion."

"This isn't a joke, Narkissa. You aren't supposed to know about it," he said shortly.

"Narkissa? A little formal, don't you think?"

He sighed. "_Sasha_, who told you about the Order?"

"No one."

"Sasha..."

"Really, no one. I was eavesdropping this summer. A lot."

He shook his head. "You shouldn't-"

"Oh, don't lecture me." Sasha was really trying to be civil to Lupin, but she could not shake the feeling that she was his superior. Remus was below her in every way she could think of. He was poorer, unemployed, self isolated, and a werewolf. Everything she knew told Sasha he was her inferior. And she would not be chastised by her inferior.

Lupin was quiet for a few moments. Sasha didn't want to speak again, subconsciously because she felt guilty for treating Lupin badly. She could not recognize this, however. Eventually, Lupin broke the silence.

"You can't tell anyone about the Order."

Sasha looked at the pleading in his eyes. "I won't," she said. Then she added, "You won't tell my father I know, will you?"

Lupin considered her for a moment as they came to a stop in front of Sasha's dorm building.

"I don't see any reason why he should have to know."

Sasha smiled. "Good. Thanks for walking me back."

"As I told you before, it was my pleasure. I hope you have a good time at your friend's." With that, Lupin turned on his heel and disappeared into the night.


	14. Chapter 14

"Come on, sunshine! Time to get up."

Sasha felt a heavy weight being thrown on her.

"I can't get up. My deadbeat boyfriend is on top of me," she grunted sleepily.

"Hey, if you want to be on top, by all means..."

"Dane!" Sasha tried to punch her boyfriend, who was grinning broadly. The restriction of both his body and the blankets made this impossible however. She had to settle for smacking the top of his head. "Uhhhg, you're crushing me."

"Well, if you weren't so tiny! Eat a sandwich, maybe..."

"It's not me!" said Sasha, defensively. "You, Dane Osborn, have gained a ton of weight."

"It's all muscle, baby," he said as he straightened up instantly, flexing both his arms and putting on a pompous expression.

Sasha kicked him both in the shoulder and off the bed. She too sat up and said, "I don't care what it is. It's still heavy as hell."

Suddenly the door swung open, and a matronly woman walked in. She had yellow, wiry hair, and a dress that looked like it was bought right out of a muggle costume shop. Not to mention a ridiculous amount of black eyeliner and dark red lipstick. However, she also carried a kind smile, and more importantly, a tray full of food.

Sasha's spirits were soaring. It was the Thursday of the reading week, and Sasha was having a fabulous time. She got on very well with Ariadne. Admittedly, the muggle was a bit strange. Sasha knew that many people in the village did not like her. They thought she was a freak. Little did they know Ariadne was far closer to the right track then they would ever be. Not that Ariadne would ever find out. International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy and all that. Regardless of the townspeople, Sasha loved the village. Dane had taken her through it several times. The cobbled streets reminded her of Hogsmead, particularly of the area around the Hog's Head. Many of the inhabitants were elderly, and in Sasha's opinion, adorable. Especially the little old couples. Sasha wondered if she would ever be like that with anyone.

Most of all, Sasha loved Ariadne's little shop with the apartment above it. It was the antithesis of her dad's large, white, London flat. The rooms were tiny, and cluttered; filled from floor to ceiling with piles of interesting muggle things. There were clearly defined paths Dane and Ariadne used to navigate through the (somewhat) organized chaos. Dane's room was in the attic of the building. It was a place full of light from the gable windows. His bed fit perfectly into a little nook underneath the room's largest window. And, at that particular moment, his room smelled like french toast.

Sure enough, the tray Ariadne was carrying held two plates of french toast and two glasses of orange juice. "Sorry, dears. I'm mixing up a bit of a potion on the breakfast table. Coven gathering tonight, you see. You'll have to eat up here."

"Ah, thanks a million," Dane said, appreciatively.

Ariadne smiled turning to Sasha. "He's so much more pleasant with you here, dear."

Dane smiled slightly, embarrassed. Quickly changing the subject he got back on the bed and said, "So, you'll be out all night, then?"

"I should be back sometime after the moon sets," she nodded, handing Dane the tray. He instantly grabbed a slice of bread and ripped a piece off with his fingers to pop in his mouth. "Don't throw any wild parties though, you hear?" she added, jokingly.

Dane smiled. "Come on, you know how Mr. McGrady from next door loves to cut a rug."

Ariadne laughed with her cracked, scratchy voice at the thought of her 90-something year old neighbour. "Well, guess I ought to get back to that potion, then, shouldn't I?"

As the door shut, Dane turned to Sasha. "I'm glad she's going out tonight. There is something special I want us to do," he said seriously. Sasha raised an eyebrow, slightly nervous.

After breakfast, Dane left to let Sasha get ready. She threw on a pair of dark wash straight jeans and an orange turtleneck sweater that hugged her curves. While she changed, Sasha pondered Dane's meaning. She didn't dare ask him, though. She was nervous what he would say if he told he the truth. Since Dane had befriended Ura and Jack, he was much more relaxed and playful. His serious attitude in that morning, which a few short months ago was more than normal, was actually a rarity. It got Sasha thinking; '_What would he take so seriously? What would depend so much on Ariadne leaving for the night?_' Sasha was nervous she already knew the answer.

A knock came from the door shook Sasha from her thoughts.

"Come in," she said weakly, knowing it was Dane.

He entered with a smile. "Ready?"

"Um, yeah," Sasha replied, flustered as she looked around wildly for her acid green dragon skin clutch purse. She also grabbed her black velvet blazer threw it over her shoulders.

Dane held the door open for her and together they trampled down the dusty staircase to the second floor. It led to a thin hallway with old, twisted hardwood floors and a moth eaten red runner carpet. The hallway was short. Only a small office, a bathroom, and Ariadne's bedroom (as well as the stairs up to Dane's room) were connected to it. At the end of the corridor, however, a white door led to the multi-purposed kitchen, dining room, and television area. In that room, Ariadne sat, muttering to herself as she read a muggle spell book. As she had for most of the trip, Sasha fought hard to suppress a smile.

"We're going into the village to shop, Ariadne. Do you want anything?" Dane asked as he crossed the tiny room in scarcely five steps.

"No dear," replied Ariadne still pouring over the book, clearly under the impression that she had made a mistake somewhere. "A box did come in this morning, though. Would you mind unpacking it before you leave?"

"Sure," he said, giving Ariadne a pat on the shoulder before trampling down the stairs. Sasha followed.

She and Dane had spent much of their week in the tiny store front area serving customers. Sasha had expected it to be completely dead, but occasionally a few passing tourists would investigate the queer shop, a woman would come in seeking a love spell, or children would come in after school seeking magic charms and talismans. As an actual witch, Sasha could confirm that most of the stuff was rubbish. Only a few of the dried plants were even remotely connected to the real wizarding world. Sasha a snickered a few days ago as Ariadne snapped at a customer for suggesting that witches flew on broomsticks.

"It's that sort of rubbish that gives wiccans a bad name, and a silly reputation," she had fumed.

Behind the shop there was another room, about equal in size. A dusty light bulb hung from the ceiling, but Sasha knew it barely worked. Luckily, the windows, though grimy, let in a lot of light. Dane found the box easily enough. It was a wooden crate, placed just to the right side of the doorway. He used a crowbar to pop the lid off and spilled its contents onto a long workbench in the centre of the room. A few books poured out as well as several smaller objects.

Dane seized one of the books almost immediately. "Woah," he said. "'Should probably take this with us."

Sasha leaned over his shoulder to see. It was bound with red dragon hide. Black fading letters at the top and bottom of the book respectively read, "_Magick Moste Evile_;_ Godelot_." Sasha supposed the latter was the author's name. Regardless, it was clearly a true blue spell book.

"Let's see," Sasha said in awe, holding her hand out.

Dane handed her the book. Carefully, she flipped through a few pages. She snorted.

"I wouldn't be too worried. It's written in ancient runes," Sasha said.

Dane took a look and, sure enough, every milky white page was covered in little symbols he only knew by glance to be rues. His brow furrowed.

"Either way, I don't feel right giving Ariadne a book bound with dragon skin."

"Where does she get this stuff?" Sasha said, shaking her head.

"She orders the stuff like the charms in bulk. Other stuff she handcrafts herself. But sometimes people sell things of interest, or, as in this case, just send it to her. I'd love to know how a muggle got their hands on this, though. Look!" Dane said pointing to a sneakoscope.

Like the book, he snatched it up instantly. Together they began sifting through the contents of the box, occasionally recovering a magical object. One of the most memorable discoveries was a pair of shoes. A pair of gold shoes. They were tiny; child sized and were very beautiful. Sasha was reminded of Cinderella's slippers, even though _they_ had only been made of glass. These slippers, in addition to being made of gold, were ornately decorated. Rubies and pearls and what looked suspiciously like diamonds, to name a few precious stones, covered the shoes. Sasha also noted how, unlike regular shoes, these slippers curled at the tips. It gave a very Western-Asia impression. Sasha thought they might be Indian, perhaps. Regardless, they were beautiful.

"Guess there would be no harm in giving _these_ to Ariadne," Dane snickered.

"No!" Sasha said all too quickly.

"You want these?" Dane asked, eyeing the shoes.

Sasha blushed. "Well, I can buy them off of Ariadne, of course, but yes, I want them. They're beautiful," she said dreamily.

"They're ridiculous," Dane countered with a repulsed expression. "But here, take them," he said, tossing Sasha the shoes. "A least they won't fit you so you can't wear them in public."

Sasha rolled her eyes. "They're decorative, Dane."

"If that's your idea of 'decorative', remind me to never let you refurbish my room."

Sasha elbowed him. "No. All your room needs is a trash bin and a power washer for all the years of dust it's collected."

"I give you a pair of shoes and this is what I get. Verbal harassment."

"You'll get over it," Sasha said, patting Dane's chest as she left the room, hugging her new shoes to her chest.

She was standing behind the counter of the Wicca store. Dane was stocking shelves and it was almost 6 in the evening. It would be night soon, and Ariadne would be leaving. Dane sent a fleeting glance at Sasha, who blushed immediately at the brief, meaningless action.

What was wrong with her? Why did she have butterflies in her stomach? She liked Dane immeasurably. She would even go as far as to say that she loved him. Why would she worry about something like being with Dane? Other couples did it all the time. Phil and Sandy were far from... virtuous. They never let on that it was very difficult. They only had good things to say about it. So long as they had a good partner, anyway. Dane would be a good partner, Sasha knew. She was sure he would be patient and caring. They had only been together for a few months, but Sasha had known Dane for years. It wasn't like she barely knew him. In her mind, Sasha tried to sift through all of her information on the topic, mentally preparing herself for the night.

It was 8 o'clock when Ariadne left. Sasha had changed into the only dress she had packed. She had planned to wear it with a sweater because it was strapless, but because of the situation, she wore it with bare arms. She also went braless. The dress was the colour of merlot and clung to her petite figure. A thick black belt around her waist made a nice contrast. There was no mistake though. It was a provocative dress, one which she had only bought because of Lena's urging.

There weren't so much butterflies in her stomach now as there was a colony of dragons. Her heartbeat sounded as loud to her as the pounding, crashing, roaring waves outside of Dane's window back in Greece. She sat at the tiny, two person kitchen table, her fingers tapping against the faux wood nervously. Dane was in his room, but he had asked Sasha to wait down in the kitchen.

Eventually he entered the kitchen, carrying a blanket under his right arm. "Ready to go?"

"Go?" Sasha asked.

Dane smiled, broadly. "Yeah. I want to show you something. Someplace."

Taken aback, Sasha stood slowly. She thought he had been getting his room ready, or something. It crossed her mind that perhaps she had misjudged his intentions.

"Okay. Is it far?"

Dane thought for a moment. "Yeah. Probably a twenty minute walk. You should wear some good shoes."

An hour had passed since they had left the little shop, and Sasha almost felt ashamed for her guess at Dane's motives. She was wrong to say the least. He had taken her to a remote clearing in the woods near his village. He had thrown down a blanket and invited her to lie next to her. As they watched the silent stars, Dane explained that the clearing was a special place for him. A place where he felt at home, where he often used to come to be alone.

With Dane's arm wrapped protectively around her neck, in was never more obvious that Dane was nothing like the man-whores Phil and Sandy usually brought back to their room. She had been so worried about the night earlier in the day, and yet, as she watched Venus high above the clouds, she felt disappointment. The Roman goddess surely never had these problems.

Sasha thought for a moment. With Venus in mind, she suddenly made a bold decision. Sasha rolled onto her right side to face Dane, and kissed him once, gently, and quickly. He blinked in surprise. She did it again, but this time he kissed back. She slipped her tongue into his mouth and lured his into hers. She sucked it lightly, eluding to an action she would soon be repeating on another body part. Dane instantly realized Sasha meant business. He grabbed her ass as she kissed her way down his jaw bone. She gave him a final hard kiss on the mouth as she unfastened his pant button and zipper. Dane's breathing quickened at her touch. She felt his body move as she took him in her hands. She brought her mouth to him, and slowly, painfully slowly, she drew a circle with her tongue. She then slipped him into her mouth as a puff of air escaped his lips, like a pale ghost against the cool night air.


End file.
